Daughters of the Unnatural
by Liayso
Summary: The daughter of The Key and The Destroyer sure has her hands full. Her twin sister wants to kill her and now she’s stuck in the past. Can she possibly calm her raging sister down and get back to her own time? ConnorDawn. Read and Review please! CH 6 UP!
1. Blast to the Past

****

Title: Daughters of the Unnatural  
**Part**: 1: Blast to the Past  
**Author**: Liayso  
**Email**:  
**Disclaimer**: The characters of Angel and Buffy are not mine. I'm just borrowing them for this story. I do own the characters D.J. and Abby.  
**Summary**: The daughter of The Key and The Destroyer sure has her hands full. Her twin sister wants to kill her and now she's stuck in the past. Can she possibly calm her raging sister down and get back to her own time? Lame summary, I know.  
**Rating**: PG-13 for swearing and violence  
**Spoilers**: Everything I guess. This story is set a couple of months after Angel's series finale.  
**A/N:** Oh and after the big battle in the alley, Gunn got back his memories of Connor. Also, this is my first Buffy/Angelverse fanfic, so go a little easy with the criticism please.

* * *

"Abby!"

A light haired brunette called out to another girl of similar appearance in front of her. Her hair was a darker shade of brown. 'Abby' turned around to face the girl who had called out to her.

"D.J." Her voice was tinged with hate and venom.

D.J. took a step back and stared back at her twin sister with a small hint of fear in her blue eyes.

"Why are you mad at me?"

Abby took a threatening step towards her and D.J. took another step backwards.

"You took everything from me." She continued to advance on her little sister, who continued to step back.

"You got it all wrong! I didn't meant to-"

"Liar! You always wanted to up one me."

D.J. stepped back into a pedestal, knocking over what was on it: a white round orb known as the Orb of Meti. Instinctively, D.J. reached out to catch the orb, but Abby chose that moment to charge her sister. The two girls hit the floor along with the orb, which shattered into millions of pieces. A white light surrounded them.

* * *

"What's she like?"

Connor asked. He was leaning forward in the back seat of Angel's car. Angel sat in the driver's seat, obviously being the driver, and Gunn was next to him in the front. They were on their way to pick up Dawn Summers from the airport.

"Well it's been awhile since I've seen her. Well, technically, I've never really met her. You know, the whole Key, fake memory thing." Angel said looking into the rearview mirror.

Connor sat back into his seat. _Dawn Summers._ The girl intrigued him. She was an ancient mystical energy called The Key who was made into the human sister of his father's first love. Her birth, or non-birth, was just unnatural as his own birth. And now she was going to stay with the newly reformed Angel Investigations in L.A. to be their book girl. The new crew now consisted of Angel, Spike, Gunn, Illyria, and Connor, who had decided to stay and live with his real father in L.A. Now Dawn would be added to their little group to translate ancient languages, provide major info on demons, and deal with all that is magical, since Wesley and Fred were now gone. They needed her help in killing a demon called the Halaman that could shortly revive itself after being killed. There was a spell to keep it from reviving itself and Dawn knew the spell.

Angel looked into his side view mirror. "Good. We haven't lost Spike and Illyria."

Spike and Illyria were driving in another car. They had taken two cars since everyone had wanted to go to the airport to meet Dawn. Also, apparently, Dawn had a whole lot of luggage, not counting all the weapons and books she was bringing. Typical teenager. Spike muttered incoherent curses as he tried lighting a cigarette while driving. Doing so caused him to nearly smash into a car that was turning in front of him.

"Watch where you're bloody going!" He yelled at the car.

"I do not think it wise to do that while driving." Illyria motioned to his smoking.

"Helps settle my nerves, Blue."

"Does the vampire fear a little girl?" She said mockingly.

"No. It's just last time I talked to the bit, she threatened to set me on fire."

Illyria smirked. "I think I can grow fond of this child."

"Haha Blue."

Spike turned his focus back to the road. _Please don't let her still hate me._

* * *

__

They're late. Dawn thought as she sat in the airport. She felt so out of place sitting by herself with all the luggage she had. People were staring. Buffy and Giles had accompanied her on her flight. They would have stayed with her until Angel and the others came, but they had to catch their flight back to London. Dawn saw the disappointment in Buffy's eyes. She had wanted to talk to the two souled vampires as well as meet Angel's son.

__

Connor. Dawn said in her mind. Her thoughts traveled to him. The two of them had a lot in common with each other. Both came from unnatural origins; both were thrust into the lives of their protectors; and both experienced the whole memory thing. She wondered what he looked like and pictured a mini-Angel. Dawn giggled a little bit and then remembered that Willow had said he looked more like Darla, but there was definitely 'Angel-ness' in him.

"Dawn!"

Dawn looked up from her thoughts to see Angel and a black man jog up to her. _He must be Gunn, _she thought. She stood up from her seat and simply stated, "You're late."

"I know. A case kind of took longer than expected." Angel lamely excused.

"Yeah, plus, it was really messy. Didn't want to make a bad first impression by being covered in demon guts." Gun joked and offered his hand. "I'm Gunn."

Dawn took his hand and shook it. She smiled and said, "Well, I guess I should be grateful you guys decided to shower first before coming." She looked around. "Is it just you guys?"

"Uh. No. We got into some trouble at the entrance."

"Demons?" Dawn asked.

"Nope, worse. Fan boys. They thought Illyria was some alien thing on this one show or something," Gunn said. "Spike and Connor are handling it."

Footsteps were heard behind them and they all turned to see Spike, Connor, and Illyria walking up to them. Connor and Spike were deep in a conversation.

"Geez, I didn't think fan boys could be so scary. I think I would rather take on three Drokken demons than face people like them!" Connor exclaimed.

"The only thing scarier than fan boys are fan girls," Spike said with a chuckle and then froze when he saw Dawn.

"Spike." Dawn took a deep breath.

"Bit." Spike would have taken a deep breath as well, had he needed to breathe.

Suddenly, Dawn threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly. "I missed you so much!"

Spike stood dumbfounded and surprised. "Well, I didn't expect this, Bit."

Dawn slowly pulled herself away from him. "What do you mean?"

"Well, before I left, we weren't exactly on speaking terms."

"I forgave you, ya know. That kinda happens when you save the world." Dawn placed her hands on her hips. Spike only smiled at her.

Angel continued to watch the little reunion until he heard his son cough next to him. Snapping back to attention, Angel said, "Oh, right!" Dawn turned her head to him. "Dawn, the one over there next to Spike is Illyria." Angel pointed to the Old One.

"Hi." Dawn said, a bit intimidated by the ex-goddess. But she held out her hand to her, nonetheless.

Illyria merely looked at her outstretched hand with a tilted head and said, "I heard you like fire."

Dawn slowly pulled her hand away from her and looked at Illyria questioningly. "Huh?"

"Uh, don't worry about it, Nibblet." Spike said.

Angel patted Connor on the shoulder. "And this is my son, Connor."

Connor stepped forward. "Hi. It's nice to meet you." Connor held out his hand and smiled.

Dawn melted at the sight of his smile. "You too." As their hands touched, a small jolt passed throughout their bodies. Dawn looked into his eyes and felt herself get lost in them. They stood there like that, hand in hand, staring into the other's eyes, for what seemed like eternity for them.

"Buffy didn't come with you?" Angel asked, pulling Dawn out of her trance.

Dawn quickly pulled her hand from Connor's. "Oh, she did, but she and Giles had to go back. If you hadn't been so late, you could've seen her." She said teasingly.

"Oh." Both vampires said simultaneously. Dawn rolled her eyes at the two. They were so obvious.

Gunn interrupted their oncoming broodiness. "So, why don't we head back to the hotel?"

They all began to gather up Dawn's things.

* * *

The bright light subsided a bit, but still surrounded the two girls. Abby's grip on D.J.'s throat loosened a little as she looked around. But then it tightened again.

"What did you do now?!" She shrieked at her sister.

"I didn't mean to." D.J. choked out.

The light grew brighter and again blinded them.

* * *

"Wow."

Dawn stood mouth agape at the entrance to the Hyperion.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Connor stood next to her, carrying a few of her bags.

"I didn't think it would be this big."

"Wait till you get inside."

Dawn pushed open the front doors and was once again in awe. "Wow." She repeated. Connor smiled at her form as it walked across the lobby. He was glad that she was impressed. The others piled in after them, carrying everything else of Dawn's.

"Damn girl. What the hell did you pack in this thing? Rocks?" Gunn and Angel struggled a little bit, carrying a large chest.

"Nope, just a bunch of new toys for you guys. You can thank me later." She continued her exploring of the hotel lobby.

Gunn opened the chest as the other three men crowded behind him. Inside was a vast assortment of weapons: swords, knives, axes, you name it.

"Whoa." Connor said as he pulled out an axe. The others followed in suit, each pulling out a weapon; each testing it out.

"How did you get all this past airport security?" Angel asked as he held up a broad sword.

"Cloaking spell." Dawn smiled. She clasped her hands together. "So, which room will I be staying in?"

"Oh. Right!" Angel put down the sword. He motioned to Connor to put down the axe and the two of them scooped up Dawn's bags. "Follow me. I hope you like the room we picked out for you. We did our best to fix it up." The three of them headed upstairs.

Spike twirled the sword in his hand. "Hey Illyria, why don't you take a swing at me. Let me try out my brand new shiny sword."

"It is a pity that you require a weapon in order to fight."

"I don't 'require' it, but it certainly makes things more interesting."

Gunn put his scimitar down and plopped himself onto the couch. It was always entertaining to watch Spike and Illyria fight. Their fights were just as good as the fights on Pay Per View, only they were free. Unfortunately, for him the light that filled the lobby interrupted the show. Sparks went off. The three of them shielded their eyes from the bright light. Spike gripped his sword tighter, Gunn reached over for his weapon, and Illyria got into a battle stance.

The light dissipated and finally disappeared. In its place were two girls. One was on the floor being choked by the other. What looked like shattered glass was also near them.

"What the bloody hell?" Spike mumbled.

The two girls turned their heads to him. Abby pulled her hands from D.J.'s throat and quickly stood up. D.J. stood up as well. The two sides of the room merely stared at each other, not sure what to do.

"What's going on?" Angel called out. He and Connor appeared on the second floor. They jumped over the railing, both landing with grace next to Spike, Gunn, and Illyria.

"How the hell am I supposed to know?! One minute there's this bright light and the next we have ourselves a couple of teenagers!" Spike yelled at him.

"Oh my god…"

D.J. was the one that had spoken out. She had said this when her eyes fell onto Connor and then onto Dawn who stood up on the second floor watching everything. Abby freaked and panicked. She turned and ran out the door. D.J. was frozen where she stood. She couldn't move her body. She just stared at Connor.

"Oh my god," she repeated. "You look so young."

"Uh, thanks?" Connor said, unsure on how to reply.

Angel took as step forward. "Who are you?"

D.J. only stared at him in shock. Then she turned her gaze to Dawn who was coming down the stairs. Seeing this, Angel called out to her.

"Dawn, get over here now."

Dawn nodded her head and quickly made her way to the others. D.J. looked around herself, finally noticing that her sister was missing.

"Abby?" She turned her head to see the hotel door swinging open. "Abby!" D.J. made her way to the door but Angel blocked her path and grabbed her by the shoulders.

"Hold on a minute! Who are you and why are you here?"

"Please move." She pleaded.

"Not until you tell me what's going on."

"Please move. I need to find my sister!" D.J. cried out.

"Just tell me who you are and maybe we can help you."

D.J. had enough of this. She shrugged off Angel's grip on her and picked him up. She flung him across the lobby. The others ducked as Angel sailed over their heads. Spike began laughing his ass off.

"I'm sorry." D.J. said before she headed for the door again.

Connor, being as quick as he was, managed to tackle D.J. down before she reached the door. Gunn and Dawn followed in suit, piling onto the struggling girl. Illyria just stood and watched and Spike was still laughing at Angel who was still trying to pull himself together.

"Ow! God! Did you all have to tackle me like that?!" D.J. yelled from under the three people on top of her.

"Well seeing as how you threw our boss like a rag doll across the lobby, I'm thinking, yes." Gunn said, doing his best to hold down the girl.

"Get off me! Please! I won't run away and I'll try to explain everything!" She cried out.

"You promise?" Dawn asked. She was holding down her feet.

"I promise."

The three of them slowly got of her. D.J. stood up and rubbed her lower back. "Thank you."

Spike had finally stopped laughing. "Well, at least the bird's polite. Saying her 'Please' and 'Thank yous'."

Angel looked at him, annoyed. "You're only saying that because she threw me across the room."

"Damn straight. Bloody well made my night." Spike said as he took out his lighter and lit a cigarette.

D.J. brushed herself off and looked around at the people staring back at her. She shifted nervously. She hated being in the spotlight. She took a nervous intake of air.

"My name is D.J. and I, uh, think I'm in the past."

"You mean, you're from the future?" Gunn asked.

D.J. nodded.

"How is that possible?" Dawn asked with a small stutter of disbelief.

D.J. pointed to the glass bits on the floor. "The Orb of Meti. It was rumored to be capable of time travel."

"Well, it's not a rumor anymore." Connor looked at the girl. "So that's why you said I looked young."

"You know us, in the future?" Dawn asked.

"Yeah, you guys raised me." D.J. looked around the lobby and saw the remaining luggage. _Mom must have just arrived. _She looked at Connor and Dawn. _ They must have just met._ D.J. decided not to tell them who she really was, the daughter of the Key and the Destroyer.

"How far into the future are you from?" Her mother asked.

"What year is it?"

"2004."

"Twenty years…I'm not even born for another five years." D.J. made her way to the lobby couch. She was still in shock at the whole thing. Gunn made his way to her.

"Your sister, Abby, right?" D.J. nodded. "Why was she trying to kill you?"

"She wasn't trying to kill me! She's just really really mad at me." She said the last sentence quietly.

"Why?" Dawn asked sitting next to her.

"It's complicated."

"We're all about the complicated."

"Well, there was a prophecy-"

"It's always a prophecy. I hate those things." Connor interrupted her.

"As I was saying," D.J. shot a glare at her father, "there was a prophecy that said that either Abby or I would kill this big bad. Everyone assumed Abby was the one since she's way stronger than I am but-"

"But it was you." Dawn finished for her.

"Yeah. It was a big blow to her ego and she totally wigged out on me. I knocked over the orb when she tried to strangle me and 'Poof!' we're here." She made hand movements to emphasize her story.

"Are you a slayer?" Angel asked her.

"If you're asking if I fight demons and help save the world occasionally, then yeah." D.J. pushed herself off the couch. "Can I go look for my sister now?"

"If she's a slayer as well, she'd probably be long gone by now." Spike blew a puff of smoke into the air.

"But I have to find her! She could be in trouble."

"If she's supposed to be stronger than you are, then I bet she can take care of herself, pet."

D.J. looked somber. "You're right. I probably wouldn't be able to track her now anyway."

__

Track? Angel thought. _Slayers don't 'track'._ He was having doubts that this girl was a slayer. _But her strength, could she be a vampire? _He looked at her and noticed her breathing as well as her heartbeat. _No, she's not a vampire. What is she then?_

"It's getting late. Why don't we all hit the sack and deal with this in the morning?" Connor suggested.

"Good idea. I second it." Dawn stifled a yawn. "Jet lag's not exactly my best friend." She turned to D.J. "I could cast a locating spell to help you find your sister in the morning."

D.J. perked up. "Really? You would do that for me?" Dawn nodded. "Thank you." The two of them headed upstairs.

Gunn looked to Angel.

"Do you think we can trust her? I mean, remember the last time a teenager popped out of nowhere to here?"

"Hey!" Connor exclaimed.

"Sorry man. But seriously, Angel."

"I don't know." Angel shook his head.

"I trust her." Connor stated. Everyone stared at him. "I dunno. There's just something about her that makes me trust her." He shrugged his shoulders.

"The girl is strong. She shall be useful in defeating the Halaman demons we're facing." Illyria stated.

"True Blue." Spike agreed.

"We'll sort all this out in the morning. It's been a long night."

The five of them ascended the steps. It had been a long night and the nights were just about to get even longer.


	2. Nose Strikes, Weed whacking

****

Title: Daughters of the Unnatural  
**Part**: 2: Nose Strikes, Weed whacking, and Touchy-Feely-ness  
**Author**: Liayso  
**Disclaimer**: The characters of Angel and Buffy are not mine. I'm just borrowing them for this story. I do own the characters D.J. and Abby.**  
Summary**: The daughter of The Key and The Destroyer sure has her hands full. Her twin sister wants to kill her and now she's stuck in the past. Can she possibly calm her raging sister down and get back to her own time? Lame summary, I know.  
**Rating**: PG-13 for swearing and violence  
**Spoilers**: Everything I guess. This story is set a couple of months after Angel's series finale.  
**A/N:** Yay! I got a few reviews! Thank you's go out to ka-mia2286, PassionateDarkness, and AbiSnocom. For reference, in this fic, Connor is 19, Dawn is 17, and D.J. and Abby are 15. Also, Abby's name isn't short for Abigail (sorry AbiSnocom!) It's kinda short for something else, or rather a nickname. You'll find out in chapter 3.

* * *

D.J. lay in her bed. Her right arm was resting on her forehead. Light spilled in through the windows from the morning sun. She just laid there thinking about her current situation.

__

Damn. What kind of mess have I gotten myself into now? She couldn't believe she was stuck in the past with her sister who was uber mad at her and for what? For killing the big bad she wanted to kill and saving her life along with the entire world? Ridiculous! D.J. turned onto her side.

__

Why did Abby react like that? She wondered, but she knew why. D.J. wasn't exactly number one in the art of butt kicking. She had just started her training a year ago as opposed to Abby's lifetime of training. Of course, Abby would be insulted that her little weakling of a sister was able to kill the demon that had kicked her ass. It was all about pride.

"Pride sucks." D.J. muttered.

There was a knock at her door.

"Come in." D.J. sat up to see her father come in. It was just so weird seeing her parents like this. In this time, they were just only a few years older than she was. It was just weird.

"Hey, breakfast's ready. You hungry?" Connor asked her.

"Yeah." She got up and straightened her clothes.

"You okay?" Connor sensed her, well for lack of a better word, broodiness.

"Still kinda getting over the shock of everything. That's all."

The two of them stood silent for a minute.

"So breakfast, do you want some or not?" Connor asked, breaking the silence.

"Oh, of course. Maybe some food will take some of the shockyness out of me." She smiled.

The two started walking for the door, with D.J. behind Connor. All of a sudden, he launched a punch at D.J. His fist smacked straight into her nose. D.J. fell on her butt, clutching her nose.

"Ow! What'd you do that for?!" She yelled. Connor immediately knelt down to her.

"Sorry! I just thought that since you're a slayer that you'd be able to, you know, dodge the blow."

"Well, you thought wrong. Ow." She moved her hands away from her nose. "Am I bleeding?"

"No. I'm so sorry D.J." He helped her up and saw her eyes tearing. "Are you crying?"

"Wouldn't you cry if you got punched in the nose?" D.J. paused. "Wait, you're used to it. Never mind."

"What kind of a slayer are you?"

"I only started training a year ago; err, when I was fourteen. The whole reflex-instinct thing hasn't exactly been burned into me."

"I didn't know. Sorry."

"Why don't we just drop it and go eat breakfast?"

"Okay. I'm really sorry though. You can punch me if it would make you feel better."

"It wouldn't, but thanks."

D.J. walked out of her room, with Connor following her. She pondered on taking a swing at her father, as he did to her, but decided against it. _He'd probably dodge it anyway._

* * *

Everyone was downstairs in the kitchen getting ready for breakfast. The table was filled with plates of eggs and bacon, cereal bowls, and glasses filled with juice and blood. Not mixed together, I might add. Dawn looked up from her plate.

"Morning….What happened?" She asked when she saw D.J. holding her nose.

"Connor punched me in the face."

"What?!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Connor!" Angel yelled.

"I'm sorry! I just wanted to test her reflexes." He held up his hands in defense.

"Connor, you don't just go around punching people just because they have super strength."

"I know Dad. I'm sorry."

"Relax you guys! It's okay now. See." D.J. moved her hands away from her nose. "Super healing, ya know." She smiled and sat down at the table, filling her plate with breakfast food.

Everyone stared at the strange girl for a second and sat down to eat. Illyria stared at the cereal bowl set in front of her. She lifted a spoonful of cereal and watched as the milk dripped back into the bowl.

"What is this substance?" She asked.

"It's called Lucky Charms, Blue." Spike took a sip of blood.

"I do not understand why you gave me this 'Lucky Charms'. I do not require nourishment."

"Really?" Dawn asked. She had been the one who set the bowl in front of Illyria.

"I am beyond eating."

"You're beyond everything, aren't you Leery?" mocked Spike. D.J. giggled. He turned to her. "So bird, you're from the future, right?" She nodded her mouth full of eggs. "Well, could you tell us if one of us vampires becomes shanshued and gets to be a real boy?"

D.J. froze. Everyone looked at her, curious at what she will say. Angel leaned into the table, awaiting her reply. D.J. looked around at everyone and swallowed her food hard.

"I'm not going to say anything." She simply stated.

"Well that's not fair, bird. If you know something, you should tell us. Or you could just tell me. I would be a secret between you and Uncle Spike." He smirked.

"The only people that are supposed to tell other people about the future are psychics, seers, and mystical guides. I'm not any of those things, so I'm not going to tell you. I don't want to mess up the future any more than I already have by coming here. The future is nice." D.J. brought her drink up to her lips.

"Except for your psycho sister out to kill you." Gunn said casually as he opened up the newspaper.

D.J. coughed as she gulped her juice down. Dawn patted her on the back.

"So you won't tell us anything about what happens to us in the future?" Dawn asked.

"Sorry." D.J. placed a piece of bacon in her mouth.

"What about lotto numbers?" Dawn asked with a smile.

D.J. shook her head and smiled. Everyone went back to his or her breakfast. They ate in silence for a few minutes. Then the phone began to ring. Angel made a move to answer it, but D.J. was quicker.

"Angel Investigations. We help the hopeless. How may we help you?"

Everyone watched D.J. as she took the call so naturally.

"Uh huh." Pause. "Okay. We'll be there as soon as we can. Thank you very much." She put down the receiver and saw everyone staring at her. "What?"

"It's just…" Angel started.

"Oh that? In the future, I always answer the phone. I'm like the secretary or telephone operator or something. Anyway, there's a Hacklar demon that escaped into the sewers. So," she clapped her hands, "should we finish breakfast first or go now?"

Angel blinked at her. _What a strange girl. _He shook himself out of it. "We should go now."

"Wait," Dawn started. D.J. turned to her. "What about your sister, D.J.? I have the spell ready."

"Oh yeah. Well, I guess Dawn and I could go look for my sister while you guys go fight the demon."

"I don't think so. Your sister seems a bit unstable. I want some muscle with you. Gunn, Connor, I want you guys to go with them. Spike, Illyria and I will go after the Hacklar." Angel said. "Let's head out." He grabbed the broad sword he had last night.

"I get stuck babysitting the teenagers? That ain't fair, Angel." Gunn said.

The three teenagers glared at him. Connor spoke up. "Hey, one of these 'teenagers' can kick your ass."

"Two actually." D.J. raised her hand. "I'm super powered too."

Spike smirked. "Have fun, Charlie boy." He patted Gunn on the back. Angel's group then headed down the sewer entrance.

"Great." Gunn rolled his eyes.

D.J. clasped her hands together. "So, what about that spell?" She was eager to find her sister.

"Oh, follow me." Dawn led them to a bunch of magical items laid out on the floor. Dawn and D.J. sat amongst the items. "Bear in mind, this is the first time I've actually tried this spell. It might not even work." Dawn said nervously.

"Don't worry. You get better with the whole magic thing. Especially with this spell, you perform it a lot in the future. I always manage to get kidnapped some how." D.J. said shaking her head at the memories.

"Oh, that's good. I mean good that I get better, not good that you get kidnapped a lot." Dawn stuttered. D.J. chuckled.

Connor knelt down beside them. "Do you do this a lot? Spells, I mean." He asked. Dawn looked at him.

"Yeah. I kind of did spells growing up. I was an amateur then and didn't know what I was doing." Dawn remembered the resurrection spell she had tried on her mother. "Then I was trained by Willow and Giles back in Europe for the past year." She began chanting.

"Oh."

Remembering that her father was a bit skeptical of magic, D.J. said, "Not all magic is evil, Connor. Some spells are used to help people. It helped you, you know."

"I know." Dawn finished her chanting and a small orb of light materialized in front of them. "What do we do now?" Connor asked.

The orb started moving, and headed for the hotel door.

"We follow the orb. Let's go." D.J. jumped up and everyone followed after her.

* * *

"I know you said you couldn't tell us about the future, but couldn't you tell us stuff like if there's flying cars or little pills that you pour water on and it turns into a cheeseburger?" Dawn asked. They were walking along the street, following the orb.

D.J. smiled. "Sorry, no flying cars and no pill cheeseburgers."

"That's too bad. I could really go for a cheeseburger right about now." Connor said, regretting not finishing his breakfast before they left.

"You're always hungry. I just wonder where it all goes, you know." Gunn said, looking at Connor's skinny frame.

"I think it's the demon slaying. We should start a fitness program. 'Kill a demon and lose ten pounds.' That could be our slogan. People would be healthy and the world would be safe." Dawn suggested.

D.J. giggled at Dawn's idea. The four of them continued to follow the glowing orb. It led them to an abandoned warehouse near the docks. The orb of light went through the door.

"She must be here." D.J. opened the door and stepped through only to meet a swift kick to her nose. She fell back into Dawn's arms and cried out, "Ow! What is it, Hit-D.J.-in-the-Nose Day?" Connor and Gunn stepped in front of D.J. and Dawn, separating them from the attacker.

"Hey! That wasn't very nice." Gunn said.

Abby lowered her leg and glared at them. "Well, I'm not exactly nice." She looked to her sister. "Should have known you would use a locating spell and bring reinforcements, D.J."

"Abby, we seriously need to talk…"

"There's nothing to talk about, Bitch!"

She then lunged at them. Gunn and Connor were caught off guard. Abby swatted Gunn to the side. He crashed into the wall. She then threw a punch at Connor, but he blocked it.

"We just want to talk!" He cried, blocking all her strikes.

"Yeah, well I like talking with my fists." Abby tried right hooking him, but Connor caught her fist and twisted her arm behind her.

"Just hear us out!"

"No!"

Abby slammed the back of her head into Connor's face, causing him to let go of her. He stumbled back while she stumbled forward. Abby quickly regained her composure and did a sweeping kick, knocking Connor down. He quickly flipped himself up. Abby tried kicking him in the head, but Connor caught her foot. She then quickly reacted by using her other leg to kick him. They both fell to the floor. Abby quickly stood up and her eyes met with her twin sister's. They stared at each other for a couple of intense minutes, and then Abby took off. D.J. could only watch as her sister ran away.

* * *

"Damn, your sister is scary, D.J.!" Gunn said as they entered the hotel.

"She's just lost." D.J. replied half-heartedly.

"Yeah, I'm sure her foot was 'lost' when it connected with your face."

Angel, Spike, and Illyria were just putting away the weapons they used to slay the Hacklar when the four came back.

"What happened?" Angel looked at the bruised and battered.

"We found her and she basically whooped our asses." Gunn replied.

"She's fast, Dad. Even faster than me." Connor said rubbing his forehead.

"She has an advantage. She knows all your moves. You guys did teach her." D.J. plopped herself onto the lobby couch.

"Looks like we taught her too well."

Gunn and Connor sat down next to her on the couch. All three of them were disappointed and humiliated with the turn of events. Dawn walked up to them. She tried to cheer up the brooding girl before her.

"We could try again tomorrow. Don't lose hope, D.J. She's your sister; she can't stay mad at you forever."

"Thanks."

"Well, we managed to locate the Halaman demons' hideout. We'll be heading out there later tonight, that is if you all are up for it." Angel looked down at the three of them. They nodded their heads. "Good. Dawn, you should get those spells ready."

"Right." Dawn headed towards her books.

"Ill be in my room. Call me when we have to head out." D.J. got up and headed upstairs. Spike took her place on the couch in between Gunn and Connor.

"So you two got your asses kicked by a little girl?" He said with a smirk. He placed his arms around their shoulders.

"Not now Spike," Gunn sighed. "Besides, I remember hearing that you got your ass kicked by a little girl a lot back in Sunnydale." Spike growled at him.

Connor got up and sat at the table where Dawn was looking through her books. "Do you need any help?" He asked her.

Dawn looked up. "No, but thanks." She felt a blush creep her cheeks. She couldn't help it. Connor was too cute. He flipped through one of the books on the table and became baffled at the foreign languages.

"You can actually understand this stuff?" He asked.

"Yeah. Translating has become second nature to me. You should see me with ancient Sumerian."

"Did you learn all this on your own?"

"No, not all of it. Giles and other people helped out a lot. But I did learn Italian all on my own, from living in Italy."

"Italy, what was that like?"

Dawn's eyes lit up. "It was really cool. The food there is incredible!" She really got into talking about her Rome stories. D.J. watched them from the second floor walkway. She smiled at them. Angel caught sight of this, but didn't know what to make of it.

* * *

"The book said that all the Halaman demons have to be killed within ten minutes of each other in order for the spell to work." Dawn said to Angel. They were all on the first floor of an abandoned apartment flat.

"All right. My lead said there would be three Halaman demons here, so we're going to split into three groups. Dawn, you're with me. We'll cover the fourth floor. Spike and Gunn, you guys have the third floor. Connor and Illyria will take the second. Understand?" Angel was in full boss mode.

"What about me?" D.J. piped up. She was disappointed that her grandfather had forgotten about her.

"Oh. Well, you can come with me." Angel still didn't fully trust the girl. She was still a mystery to him.

"Can I go with Connor and Illyria?" She asked. D.J. remembered the stories that her father had been poisoned in the battle with the Halaman. She thought she could maybe prevent it, even though that action would contradict what she said at breakfast, about not wanting to mess up the future.

"I guess." Angel said warily.

"Cool."

"All right. You all know what to do. To kill it, attack the giant flower bulb at the top of its body."

Everyone nodded and headed to the places they were assigned to.

"So why come with me and Illyria?" Connor asked the small girl next to him.

"You guys are the ones that will need my help the most."

Illyria stopped walking. She took that comment offensively. "Do not insult me child. I am far more powerful than you are."

"I'm sorry Illyria; I didn't mean to insult you. Plus, I already know that you're really strong." She said with a smile. _God, I am such a suck up._

Illyria seemed content with her apology and the three of them kept walking down the hallway.

"So, you know what to expect?" Connor asked.

"Yeah. You guys told me stories about this. Halaman demons are evil plant demons complete with vines, poisonous flowers, and some sort of pus oozing from their pores."

Suddenly a vine shot out in front of them through a pair of steel doors. D.J. let out a small "Eek!" Illyria grabbed the vine and twisted it off the demon. It looks like they found their demon. A loud crash was heard further down the hall. All three of them turned their heads to the noise.

"Oh yeah. There are actually four demons here and you guys got stuck with two." D.J. said sheepishly.

"And you couldn't tell us this before because?!" Connor growled.

"Go. I shall lay waste to this demon and make a trophy from its spine." Illyria said walking to the Halaman.

"It's a plant demon; it doesn't have a spine. It has stems and cell walls." D.J. pointed out.

"Whatever! Let's go!"

Connor grabbed D.J.'s arm and the tow ran down the hall while Illyria proceeded to 'lay waste' to the demon. Connor kicked open the door leading to the second demon and tightened his grip on his axe. He slowly walked in with D.J. close behind him.

The Halaman demon stood eight feet tall, not counting the tentacle-like vines hovering everywhere, above and below. Purple flowers adorned its main body, which was of a puke green color. The whole thing was slimy and gross. A giant flower bulb sat atop the body. This was their target to go for a kill. Too bad the vines created a moving attacking shield for it.

"Lovely." D.J. said sarcastically, taking in the horrible sight of the demon before her.

A vine shot out towards them. Both D.J. and Connor jumped to the side, the vine had split them apart. Connor quickly reacted and used his axe t chop it in half. D.J. was knocked down by another one, her sword slid a couple feet away from her. She quickly scrambled to get it and retaliated back onto the vine that had struck her down. The two proceeded to chop up vine after vine in order to get to the bulb. Another vine came up from behind D.J. and wrapped itself around her body. Before it could fully limit the use of her arms, D.J. threw her sword towards Connor. It slid near his feet. The Halaman tightened its grip around D.J. and she screamed out in pain.

"D.J.!" Connor quickly threw his axe at the vine, slicing through it. The axe hit the wall and D.J. fell to the floor with a loud thud. She clumsily got up and tried to retrieve the axe embedded in the wall. Connor took hold of D.J.'s sword, dodged another vine, and was able to reach the main body.

D.J. put her foot up against the wall and tried pulling out the axe. She did, but ended up stumbling backwards onto her behind. She quickly got up to see her father chop off the plant bud. She called out to him, "Watch out for the poisonous flowers!"

Too late. As soon as Connor chopped off the 'head', a flower shot a dart like plant needle and it hit Connor in the neck. The Halaman demon fell to the floor, dead. Connor pulled the dart out from his neck and stood for a minute. He then looked at D.J. and then fell to the floor, unconscious.

"Connor!"

D.J. rushed to her father's side. She placed his head upon her lap and lightly patted the side of his face to wake him up. She freaked out. She knew that this would happen, but it was still shocking to actually witness it. Seeing her father fall like that was like having Superman crumble.

"Come on Dad! Wake up!" She cried out.

"You called him 'Dad'."

D.J. froze. Her heavy breathing slowed to a halt. She turned her head to see Illyria behind her. The blue goddess only stared down at her. D.J. didn't know what to say, so she remained silent. They were like that for a couple of minutes.

"Connor!"

D.J finally broke away from Illyria's gaze and saw Angel and her mother run up to them. The others were right behind them. They obviously defeated their demons.

"Dawn, say the spell!" Angel commanded.

Dawn pulled her worried gaze from Connor and began the spell to make sure that the demons didn't revive.

"What happened?" Angel demanded. He was angry.

"He was poisoned." D.J. choked out. "There's an antidote."

Angel scooped Connor into his arms. "We have to get him home."

* * *

Connor lay on his bed. Angel was in a chair at his side. His chin rested on his fists. D.J. stood at the side of the room, leaning on a dresser. Angel lifted his chin and reached out his hand. He placed it on Connor's forehead.

"He's burning up."

Connor was sweating and his breathing was fast and harsh. The door creaked open and both Angel and D.J. looked up to see Dawn. In her right hand was a glass filled with a blue liquid. In her left was a bowl of water. The corner of a washcloth could be seen poking from within the bowl above the rim. She walked over to the bed and set the bowl down on the end table.

"I made the antidote. You need to hold him up so I can give it to him."

Angel slowly lifted Connor up and Dawn lifted the glass to his lips. D.J. pushed herself off the dresser and walked closer to get a better look at what was happening. Connor coughed a little bit as he drank the antidote. Soon all of the blue liquid disappeared into his mouth. Dawn set the glass on the end table and dipped the washcloth into the bowl of water. Angel laid Connor back down.

"He's not waking up." Angel said, worried.

"It's going to take some time, Angel." Dawn placed the washcloth onto Connor's forehead.

"He doesn't die."

Both Angel and Dawn turned their heads to the girl.

"He doesn't die." She repeated. "This happened in my time too. Connor doesn't die tonight. He doesn't die for at least another twenty years."

Angel was comforted by her words. "Thank you."

D.J. gave him a small smile. "I'm going to go now." She motioned towards the door. Angel only nodded and turned his attention back to his son. D.J. gave one final look towards her family, then left he room. She found Spike in the lobby.

"How's Angel Jr.?" He asked her.

"They just gave him the antidote. He should be all right in the morning."

"That's good. Didn't want the bloody poof to start his drama again."

D.J. grinned at the bleached vampire. Despite their constant bickering, she knew that Spike and Angel looked after each other. They were rivals, and in a way, best friends…that beat each other up. D.J. looked around.

"Uh, do you know where Illyria is, Spike?"

"Blue? She's down in the basement."

"Thanks!"

D.J. spun on her heels and headed to the basement. She did find Illyria there. Illyria trailed her leathered fingers along the training vault they had. She turned around to see D.J. descend the basement steps.

"Hey."

Illyria said nothing and only stared at her. D.J. shifted uncomfortably under her gaze. The Old One finally said some thing.

"You wish to speak to me."

"Yeah." D.J. took a nervous step forward. "About what I called Connor-"

"You called him 'Dad'. That is the word the boy uses to call Angel because he is Angel's offspring. Your calling of Connor the word 'Dad' leads me to believe that you are his offspring."

"Yes. Connor is my father. I am his daughter."

"It makes sense. Your appearance is similar. However, you look more like your mother."

__

She put two and two together. D.J. shifted uncomfortably again. "You aren't going to tell everyone, are you?"

"Of what use would it be for me to tell them?" Illyria said in reply.

D.J.'s eyes lit up. She knew this was the blue goddess's way or saying "No." She squealed in delight and launched her arms around an unsuspecting Illyria in a hug. D.J. immediately caught herself and pulled away.

"I'm sorry. I forgot that you don't like being hugged."

"You hug me in the future?" Illyria raised an eye at the girl.

"Yeah. It was a reaction when you agreed to teach me how to fight."

"I am your teacher?" D.J. nodded. "Why not go to Angel? Or to your father?"

"Well, if you wanted to become stronger, wouldn't you go to someone who used to rule the world?" D.J. said with a smile.

Illyria grinned back at her, obviously taking in her praise.

"Show me."

"Huh?" D.J. blinked.

"Show me what I have taught you."

"Oh. Okay." D.J. got into a battle stance.

* * *

It was very late. D.J. walked down the hallways of Hyperion, rubbing her side. She just came from her sparring session with Illyria and man was she sore! She had almost forgotten that Illyria never held back. She continued her walk.

__

I think I'll check up on Dad before I go to bed.

She headed towards Connor's room. She turned a corner only to see Dawn enter Connor's room. Wondering what she was doing, D.J. crept up slowly. The door was left slightly ajar. D.J. knelt down and peeked through the space. Dawn removed the cloth from Connor's forehead and felt it.

"Looks like your fever's gone down. That's good."

Dawn headed to the bathroom to put away the washcloth and wash her hands. D.J. saw Connor open one eye to watch her.

__

That faker! D.J. thought, laughing inside her mind.

Connor quickly shut his eye and feigned sleeping again when Dawn returned. She sat down in the chair that Angel had occupied earlier that night. Dawn looked at Connor and gently brushed a few locks of hair from his face. D.J. watched everything intently.

__

He's so skinny. How could he be so strong? Dawn thought. _Then again, Buffy's shorter than I am and she still kicks major ass._ She smiled. Curious, Dawn slowly placed her hand onto Connor's chest. She felt his heart beat, which was slow and steady, unlike her own which began to beat very rapidly. Connor decided to toy with her a bit. He grabbed her hand and began stroking it with his thumb.

"So soft…" He said, still faking a dream like state.

Dawn tensed up. "Connor?" She leaned over him.

Connor could feel her breath on his face. He couldn't help it. He began to grin, eyes still closed. D.J. used all her strength to keep from laughing aloud.

"You're awake, aren't you?" Dawn asked. She was annoyed and was also turning red.

Connor's eyes fluttered open and he grinned like the Cheshire cat at her. Dawn pulled her hand away from his and punched him lightly in the shoulder. He let out a chuckle.

"You dumb ass!" Dawn got up and headed for the door. "I'm just going to go crawl under a rock and die from embarrassment." She mumbled under her breath. Both D.J. and Connor heard her though.

__

Oh, crap! D.J. clumsily got up from her kneeling position and ran down the hall. She didn't want to be caught spying.

"Wait, I'm sorry. Don't go. Stay with me, please?" Connor called out to Dawn.

Dawn turned and pondered for a minute. She decided to stay and sat back down in the chair. Her cheeks were still a bit red from anger and embarrassment.

"So what exactly happened to me? One minute, I killed the demon and the next I'm here with you groping me." Connor said with a smirk.

Dawn blushed even harder. If she blushed anymore, her face might just stay permanently red. "You were poisoned. We brought you back and gave you the antidote. I just wanted to check up on you. Sorry for the touchy-feely-ness."

"It's all right." Connor smiled at her and Dawn smiled back.

* * *

D.J. slowed her sprint to a brisk walk. As she rounded a corner, she turned her head back to see if her mother had seen her. Not watching where she was going, D.J. smacked right into someone. She stumbled back a few steps and looked up to see Spike.

"God! Lurk much?"

Spike blinked. For a second he thought he was looking at Dawn. He shook himself out of it and shot back.

"First of all, I'm not lurking. You're the one who walked into me. Second, isn't it past your bed, teeny bit?"

"I just wanted to check on Connor. What are you doing up?"

"I'm a vampire. I'm supposed to be up at this time."

"Oh. Right." D.J. looked around at nothing. "Well, g'night!" She said quickly and slid past him.

Spike watched as the girl walked away and pictured seeing Dawn again. Spike shook his head.

"Strange."

* * *

TBC…

A/N: It's amazing how much a simple sentence of praise can brighten up a person's day, so click the button below and review! I need feedback to become a better writer. How were the fight scenes? Please tell me, because there's going to a lot more in future chapters.


	3. Blood Smells Like

****

Title: Daughters of the Unnatural  
**Part**: Blood Smells Like…  
**Author**: Liayso  
**Disclaimer**: The characters of Angel and Buffy are not mine. I'm just borrowing them for this story. I do own the characters D.J. and Abby.**  
Summary**: The daughter of The Key and The Destroyer sure has her hands full. Her twin sister wants to kill her and now she's stuck in the past. Can she possibly calm her raging sister down and get back to her own time? Lame summary, I know.  
**Rating**: PG-13 for swearing and violence  
**Spoilers**: Everything I guess. This story is set a couple of months after Angel's series finale.  
**A/N:** Again, "Thank you" to the people that reviewed. Feedback is always appreciated. Also, in chapter two, two different types of demons were fought. In my story Angel, Spike, and Illyria fought a Hacklar demon in the sewers, while the others went to look for Abby. The Hacklar was a demon that wasn't shown on the show, but it was mentioned. Angel, Wes, and Gunn fought it around the end of Season 2, right before they fought that Drokken thing and Cordy was sucked into Pylea. Back to the story, later that night, they fought a different demon called Halaman. The Halaman demon is a demon that I made up. Halaman is Tagalog for plant, at least that's what my Filipino-English dictionary said; I'm not fluent in it. I hope that cleared everything up.

* * *

It had been a slow day. No one had called in for help. So to occupy their time Angel, Gunn and Spike played poker while Illyria watched them. Connor was still in bed, and D.J. and Dawn were trying the locating spell for Abby once again.

"I don't get it." Dawn said as the yellow orb disappeared in front of her. She looked to D.J. "I thought you said I was good at this."

"You are. Abby must have cast a cloaking spell to block it. She doesn't want us to find her." D.J. let out a disappointed sigh.

"Bloody hell."

D.J. and Dawn turned their heads to the poker game. Spike angrily threw down his cards. He had lost again.

"What is the purpose of this game?" Illyria asked. "Why do you play it?"

"Well, normally we'd be playing for money, but since none of us have money, we play to humiliate Spike." Gunn said with a smirk.

"Teach it to me." The Old One replied.

"Ha ha." Spike said sarcastically. "How 'bout we play Rummy 'stead?" He looked to the two girls. "Do you girls want to play?"

"Sure." Dawn sat down next to Spike.

"Deal me in. Just let me get a drink first." D.J. got up and headed to the kitchen. As Spike dealt the cards out, the phone rang. Gunn got up to answer it.

"Angel Investigations. How may I help you? Oh, hey Rondell. How have you been doin'?" Pause. "That's cool." Another pause. "Really?" Pause. "Sure, we'll be right over there in about fifteen minutes. You know I got your back bro. See ya man." Gunn put down the receiver. "Yo Angel!"

"Yeah?"

"That was Rondell. He said he found a vamp nest and asked if we could back him up. I told him we would help take them out."

"'Bout time we got some action." Spike stood up.

"All right. Everyone, suit up." Angel said.

"Even me?" Dawn asked surprised.

"Well, yeah. You can slay vampires, right?"

"Please. I grew up in Sunnydale. I was just surprised that you didn't tell me to stay home." Dawn walked over to the weapons chest and pulled out a crossbow.

D.J. came back with a soda can in her hand. She saw everyone arming themselves with weapons. She placed her drink on the lobby counter. "What's going on?"

Gunn picked up an axe. "We found a vamp nest. Want to come?" He held out a stake to her.

"Sure." D.J. smiled and took the stake. She was glad that she wasn't being treated like a baby, like the way she was in the future.

"What about me?"

They all turned to see Connor coming down the stairs.

"Are you sure you're up for it, son?" Angel asked. "The poison…"

"Is out of me. I can handle a few vampires."

"I don't know. I think you should sit this one out."

"Why? I feel perfectly fine."

As to prove a point, Angle launched a punch to Connor's gut. Still a bit sluggish from the poison, Connor was unable to dodge the blow. D.J. flinched when he fell to the floor.

"That's it. You're staying here. D.J., Dawn, I want you two to stay here and keep an eye on him."

"That's not fair Dad!" Connor growled at him. He stood up to glare at his father.

Angel ignored him. "Let's head out."

They left D.J., Dawn and Connor standing in the lobby. Connor let out an irritated growl and then stomped off to the basement. D.J. and Dawn didn't know what to do. Dawn then proceeded to put away the crossbow she had picked up. D.J. turned to her.

"Shouldn't we, you know, go talk to him?"

"I don't know. I really don't want to be mixed up in the whole father-son thing. Besides, he seemed really angry."

"That's why we should go talk to him!"

D.J. ran to the basement. She found her father punching the punching bag. She slowly descended the basement steps, watching her father vent out his frustration. When she reached the last step, he took hold of the punching bag and looked at her.

"What do you want?"

D.J. shrunk back at his angry tone. She wasn't used to him being mad at her.

"I just wanted to see if you were all right."

"I'm fine." He resumed to beating the crap out of the punching bag.

"That's a load of bull. In the future you always come down here when something's bothering you and I always come down to talk to you about it."

Connor stopped punching and raised an eyebrow at the girl. "What are you, my shrink?"

"In a way, yeah"

Connor paused. "Does it help? Talking to you?"

"Most of the time. So talk." D.J. sat down on the training bench.

Connor let out a frustrated sigh. "It's just my father. I hate it when he gets all overprotective of me. It's annoying."

"Well, he's your father. It's kind of his job to be over protective of you. He just wants you to be safe. Plus, I think he's making up for lost time for when you grew up in Quar'toth."

Connor looked at the ground. D.J. continued.

"Also, I think it's inevitable for fathers to be overprotective of their children. I mean, you're way overprotective."

Connor immediately looked up at her. D.J. realized her slip up.

"Oh crap."

"I have kids? In the future, I have kids?"

"I didn't say that!" D.J. stood up.

"But you implied it!" He pointed at her then turned around in disbelief. "I can't I have kids!"

"Well duh. It's twenty years into the future. You were bound to marry the woman of your dreams and have kids." D.J. rolled her eyes.

Connor turned back to her. "Who do I marry? What is she like? What are my kids' names?"

Connor let loose question after question onto the poor girl. D.J. looked like a deer caught in a car's headlights.

"This is exactly why I didn't want to reveal the future to you guys! Too many questions!" She held her head with her hands.

"I'm sorry." Connor backed off her. "I guess I got carried away. It's just…wow." He smiled. "Couldn't you just tell me a bit more?" He pleaded.

"No! Connor, I've never lied to you before. I don't want to have to start now. Please, don't press it any further." D.J. gave him a stern look. She hated lying to her father.

"All right. But just tell me this one thing."

D.J. shifted the weight in her feet, waiting for his question.

"Am I a good father this time?" He said, remembering the whole Jasmine ordeal.

D.J.'s features softened. She then smiled. "Yeah. I know for a fact that one of your kids loves you very much."

Connor smiled back at her. He then went up the basement steps. At the top, he turned and looked down at D.J.

"Thank you, D.J." He turned again and left the basement.

"You're welcome!" She called out to him. Then in a soft whisper she added, "Dad."

D.J. slightly punched the punching bag.

* * *

Angel ducked a punch from the vampire in front of him and kicked him in the gut. The vampire stumbled back and growled. Angel swung his sword at his neck. In a swift motion, the vampire was decapitated and turned to dust.

The vampire nest was packed. There were about twenty vamps there, maybe even more. Angel almost regretted not taking Connor, Dawn and D.J. with them. Distracted by his thoughts, Angel failed to sense the vampire behind him. He grabbed Angel from behind and held him in a bear hug. Angel's sword fell to the floor with a steel clatter. He struggled to break free. Then suddenly the grip was gone and there was only dust.

Angel turned around to see Abby holding up a stake in her hand. She straightened herself and turned her chin up a bit at him. Angel shuddered. The look on her face reminded him of Connor when he first came out of Quar'toth. Abby then spun around and staked the vamp coming from behind her. Angel snapped back to attention, realizing that they were still in the middle of a fight. He reached down and grabbed his fallen sword.

With Abby's help, the fight went much easier and smoother for the gang. The vamps didn't stand a chance. Angel watched Abby move. Her fighting style was a combination of his, Connor's, Gunn's, and Spike's.

__

So we really did teach her. Angel thought.

Two vampires tried double-teaming the brunette. One grabbed her arms and held her from behind while the other tried to rush her. Abby used both her feet to kick the oncoming vamp away from her and into the path of Angel's sword. He lopped off his head easily. Abby slipped away from the vampire holding her and sent a swift kick to his head, knocking him down. She quickly knelt down to stake him. The battle was won. All un-souled vampires were dust.

"Stupid blood-suckers." Abby muttered as she brushed the dust off herself. "At least they don't leave blood when they die. It's such a bitch to get out of clothing."

Angel took a step towards her. "Abby, right?"

Abby looked up at him. She nodded. Angel didn't know what to expect from the girl. She had attacked Connor and Gunn without reserve. He held up a hand in a peaceful gesture.

"Your sister, D.J., she's looking for you. She's worried about you."

"Like I give a damn about her."

Angel flinched at the ice in her words. It all seemed so vaguely familiar. Abby turned to leave, but Angel called out to her.

"Wait!"

"Don't try to stop me!" She yelled at him. "I didn't come here for one of your soul-filled chats. I came here to dust me some vamps and I've done that. So I'm going to split. Oh, and tell my bitch of a little sister that I have a score to settle with her."

Abby took off. Gunn stepped next to Angel.

"What a brat." He simply said.

* * *

The four piled into the hotel to be greeted by Dawn and D.J.

"Hey, how did the vampire slaying go?" Dawn asked.

"It went well." Angel looked to D.J. "We saw your sister. She helped us out."

D.J. blinked. "She did? What did she say?"

Angel's silence told her that it wasn't anything good. D.J. sat herself onto the couch and slouched into it, entering broody mode.

"She's still mad at me, huh?"

She let out a sigh and looked down at her feet. Yup, she was in full brood mode now. Angel looked around.

"Where's Connor?"

"Oh, he's up in his room." Dawn said.

"And you're sure he hasn't snuck out through the windows or something?" Angel asked.

"I'm the one that sneaks out windows, Angel." Dawn shook her head at the old memories.

"Yeah, well, Connor's gone through a lot of windows too." He remembered when the Beast threw him from his loft.

"Don't worry. He's still in his room. I talked to him and calmed him down a bit. He's still a little peeved at you though. You should go talk to him." D.J. sat up.

"I think I will."

Angel went upstairs on knocked on Connor's door. A muffled "Come in." was heard from the other side. Angel opened the door to find Connor on his bed reading a book.

"Hey."

"Hey." Connor set his book down.

"Look, I'm sorry for being harsh on you earlier. I just didn't want you to get hurt."

"I know. You were only trying to protect me. That's what D.J. said. How was the hunt?"

"It was good. D.J.'s sister, Abby, was there. You were right; she's a really strong fighter. Makes me wonder what D.J.'s capable of."

"Not much. She was really clumsy in the battle against the Halaman demon. She said she only started her training a year a go. But she held her own."

"Abby was really graceful in her moves. There's no way she could have mastered fighting in a year." Angel paused after a beat. "How did this conversation go from an apology to about the twin daughters of destruction?"

Connor realized it too. "I don't know."

Suddenly, a loud crash was heard from downstairs.

"Angel!"

Both Angel and Connor looked at each other before sprinting out the door. Downstairs, Gunn was sprawled over a now broken coffee table with a demon hovering over him. Illyria grabbed hold of the demon and threw it off him to the other side of the lobby. It landed nimbly on its feet and let out a small snarl. Angel jumped down to the first floor.

"What's going on?"

"Well, apparently, the Hacklar we killed the other night had a baby." Spike said, gripping his sword tight.

"It seeks vengeance upon us." Illyria said, helping Gunn up.

Dawn aimed her crossbow at the demon and shot at it. The demon dodged the arrow and lunged at her. Angel tackled the demon before it reached Dawn as she struggled to reload her gun. The demon managed to pin Angel to the wall. He did his best to keep the snarling teeth and razor sharp claws away from him. Suddenly the demon stopped struggling and slumped to the floor, dead. An axe was embedded in its back. Angel looked straight ahead to see a very shocked looking D.J.

"Wow…I actually got it."

Everyone stared in amusement at the girl. She was bouncing up and down in excitement. Connor came down the steps.

__

Definitely not used to the slaying biz. He thought.

Angel finished his thoughts. _And so unlike her sister._

* * *

The next day, Angel was looking through papers of recent cases. He closed the manila folder and got up from his desk. He proceeded to the filing cabinet, thumbed through the tabs, and placed the folder where it belonged. He turned around to see D.J. in front of him. He let out a small yelp and jumped back into the cabinet.

"Did I startle ya?" D.J. asked.

"Where did you come from?" He asked back.

"Sorry, I kind of do that sometimes. The whole appearing-out-of nowhere thing." She turned around and walked to the lobby counter. She started looking through the papers on it.

Angel straightened his self out. "Yeah, I do that too. Is there something you wanted?"

D.J. looked over her shoulder at him. "No. I was just wondering where everyone is."

"Oh. Gunn, Connor, and Dawn went out to get some food, and Illyria and Spike are in the basement, sparring."

D.J. turned back to the papers. "I thought so. I can hear Spike cursing from down there." She said with a chuckle.

Angel frowned. _She has super hearing too?_ He eyed the girl curiously. "Hey, Connor's told me that you've only been training for only a year. Is that right?"

She looked at him again. "That's right."

"Well, how would you like me to train you some more? I mean, I can tell you have a lot of potential to become an excellent fighter from what I've seen from you and Abby."

"Really?" Her blue eyes lit up and her face broke into a grin. "I would love to!"

"All right then." They both exited the office and headed to where all the weapons lay. "So what exactly do you know?"

"Uh, basic hand to hand combat."

"What about weapons? Do you even know how to handle a sword?" He asked as she picked up a long sword.

"Yeah." D.J. placed her fingertip onto the tip of the blade. "Pointy end goes into the demon." She said with a smile.

Angel stared at her with an incredulous look.

"Kidding. Swords and stakes are what I'm comfortable with." She put the sword down. "It's everything else that I'm a bit shabby with."

"All right then. How about we start with the crossbow?" He placed a crossbow in her hands. "This is how to load it." He guided her fingers to load the arrow in. Then he placed her fingers on the trigger and let go. "All right. You want to hold it tight. When you aim, keep--"

__

Swish.

An arrow shot out and hit the wall…inches away from Spike's face.

"Oops." D.J. said. She lowered the crossbow.

"Bloody hell, bit! Watch where you aim that thing!" He yelled as he pulled the arrow out of the wall.

"Sorry." She said sheepishly.

"It's okay, D.J." Angel smiled, taking the crossbow from her. "You did well."

She looked up at him. "You're only saying that because I almost hit Spike."

They both chuckled. Spike growled at them. The Hyperion doors opened and closed. Through them came Connor, Dawn and Gunn, each holding a bag of food.

"We brought yummy unhealthy junk food goodness!" Dawn called out to them.

D.J. looked up at Angel. "Can we take a break?"

"Sure."

She bounced over to Dawn. Angel watched the girl curiously. The vibe she was giving him was too familiar.

* * *

It was nighttime. That meant it was time to slay. The whole gang was down by the loading docks fighting some large cat-like demons. They were all fairing pretty well, even D.J. and Dawn, who were the least experienced. More so, in D.J's case, but she at least had super strength. She managed to take down one of the cat demons on her own.

Dawn shot two arrows at one's leg, immobilizing it. Gunn finished it off, stabbing it in the gut. He moved onto another one. Dawn tried reloading her crossbow with her last arrow as another cat lunged at her. Luckily, for her, Connor tackled it down and stabbed it.

"Thanks."

Connor wiped the blood from his forehead. "No problem."

Dawn smiled at him then her eyes widened. She aimed her crossbow and the arrow whizzed past Connor's head into the mouth of an oncoming demon. It pierced its throat. Connor quickly spun around to see the demon fall down dead.

"Thanks." He said.

"No problem."

They both smiled at each other. Out of arrows, Dawn tossed her crossbow aside and took out a long knife from her belt. She and Connor decided to team up.

D.J. was struggling with one of the demons. It had her sword in its mouth and she struggled to break it free from it's jaws. She kicked its midsection and demon let go. It stumbled back a bit and let out a growl. D.J. backed up a bit as well, and then she realized she was on the edge of the platform they were on. The demon lunged at her and tackled her off the platform. She screamed as she fell. Angel saw the whole thing.

"D.J.!" He tried to get to her, but two more demons kept him occupied.

D.J. struggled to get up. She had lost her sword when she fell. The demon swatted one of its clawed paws at her. She screamed out in pain as the claws ripped into the flesh of her left arm. With her right hand she gripped her wound, wincing. The demon jumped back then head rushed her in the stomach, knocking D.J. into a corner. It jumped back again. With nowhere to run, D.J. closed her eyes.

__

I'm going to die.

She anticipated fangs digging into her, but it never came. Instead she heard a loud, pain filled roar. D.J. opened her eyes to see the demon fall down. She saw Abby with her sword.

"Pathetic. There's no point in having the power if you don't have the skill to use it." She flicked the sword of its blood. A loud thud was heard behind her. Abby turned to see Angel.

"So the champion finally comes to save the damsel in distress." Abby looked to D.J. huddled in the corner. "You suck at being the hero. Stay a helpless damsel. You're good at that." And with those words, she took off.

Angel walked over to the somber girl. He held out a hand to her and D.J. grabbed it with her blood-covered right hand.

"Are you all right?" He asked her.

"Yeah." She looked at her arm. "It's just a flesh wound." She walked away from Angel.

Angel watched the girl. Then he looked at his hand. _D.J.'s blood._ He smelt it and his eyes widened.

* * *

D.J. sent a kick to the punching bag. It swung on its chain. She took a hold of it to stop it from swaying and leaned her forehead against it. She closed her eyes. She wanted to cry. Her left arm was bandaged up. She was down in the basement, all by herself. At least, she was.

Angel stared at the girl. He then coughed to get her attention. She looked up.

"Hey." She said, somberly.

"Hey. How's your arm?"

"All right." D.J. took off the bandages. The wound now showed up as shallow cuts. "Almost all healed up." She wrapped the bandage around her arm again.

"Quick healing sure is useful."

They were silent for a minute.

"Did you want something, Angel?" D.J. asked.

"Yeah, an answer."

"What's the question?"

Angel stepped towards her. "Why does your blood smell so similar to Connor's and mine?"

D.J.'s eyes widened. "W-why do you think it smells similar?" She stuttered among her words.

"What are you?"

"A healthy girl with enhanced abilities?" She gulped out.

Angel stared her down, hard. D.J. let out a loud sigh. _There's no point in hiding it from him anymore._

"He's my father." She said softly. "Connor is my father."

Angel had expected something like this, but it was still quite a shock to actually have it said aloud for him. He stared at the girl in front of him. He remained silent, letting everything sink into him. D.J. felt uncomfortable by his lack of reaction.

"Can you say something? You're kind of freaking me out."

"Oh my god!" Suddenly Angel smiled and pulled the girl into a tight hug. He picked her up, spun her around, and then set her down.

"Well, that was something." D.J. said, blinking. _He's going to have one of those rare goofy moments, isn't he?_

"Oh my god." Angel repeated. "Connor is your father? You're Connor's daughter? I'm your grandfather? You're my granddaughter?" He gripped her shoulders lightly.

"That's kind of how it works."

"Oh my god." Angel repeated once again. His brow furrowed. "Who's your mother?"

"Dawn."

Angel's eyes widened. "Dawn? My son and Buffy's little sister?"

"Um, yeah."

Angel let go of D.J.'s shoulders. "Wow. I didn't see that coming." He paused. "I can't believe I have a granddaughter." He smiled

"Granddaughters," D.J. corrected him. "Don't forget about Abby."

Angel's smile disappeared. "Abby…" _Great, my line produces yet again, another angry teenager._ He sat down on the bench. "What are we going to do about her?"

D.J. sat next to him and pulled her knees to her chin. She wrapped her arms around her legs. "I'm not sure." She paused. "But if you even think about doing that memory-mind wipe thing, I will have to sink you to the bottom of the ocean."

"Ah, so you know the family history."

"I've had some interesting bedtime stories." D.J paused and looked up at Angel. "But seriously, just let me handle it. I think I can still reach her. She did save my life tonight."

"All right. You want to tell me the whole story now that I know your secret?" He looked down at the girl.

"Everything that I've told you so far has been true, but I guess I should give you some back story." D.J. set her legs down and gripped the edge of the bench. "You see, I might have started my training a year ago, but Abby's been training practically her whole life. She killed her first demon when she was only six. After that day, you guys trained her extensively."

"And you?"

"I was so terrified that day. I refused to take part in any demon fighting or training. I grew up to be a book girl." She stared at her feet.

"And?"

"And since I refused to train, I became the target to be kidnapped."

"You? But your super strength-"

"What Abby said was right. There's no point in having the power if you don't have the skill." She tucked her knees back under her chin again. "I grew tired of it, being the damsel in distress. So when I turned fourteen, I asked Illyria to train me in secret."

"Illyria? Why didn't you come to me? Or Connor?"

D.J. blushed. "I was kind of embarrassed to. For years, I refused your training. I thought you would be all 'Oh, so _now_ you want to learn how to fight'. Plus, I like Illyria's style of fighting and I wanted it to be a surprise."

"You still could have come to me." He was hurt that his own granddaughter didn't come to him for help.

"I know. I'm sorry." She paused and hugged her legs closer to herself. "You guys found out a couple of nights before the prophecy took place. We were grabbing a bite to eat for dinner and were attacked by some vampires when we were heading home. You guys were so surprised when I managed to take out a couple of the vamps." D.J. shook her head at the memory, smiling. But then that smile faded away. "Then that prophecy had to happen."

"And that's when Abby…"

"Yeah. It's understandable. I went from being the team mascot to the starting quarterback in a couple of nights. I would be insulted and jealous too. Fighting was like her whole life."

The two were silent for a moment. Then Angel spoke up.

"Your name, what does it stand for?"

"Oh. My full name is Darla-Joyce." She said with a small smile.

"Oh. That's nice." Angel was somewhat disappointed that his son didn't name one of his kids after him. Angel was a really feminine name.

"Abby's named after you." D.J. said, almost sensing his thoughts.

"Huh? I don't see the connection."

"Her full name is Angela-Buffy. A.B. Abby."

Angel smiled. "So one is named after the mothers and the other is named after the champions."

"Yeah." D.J. paused. "You're not going to tell them, are you, Gramps?"

Angel looked at her. "No, I won't tell them." He paused. "Did you just call me 'Gramps'?" He frowned at how he was referred to.

"Uh, yeah." She rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Spike got us saying it. We were only two. It was hard for us to say 'Grandfather' so Spike told us to just call you 'Gramps'." D.J. paused. "He wanted us to call you some other things too, you know." She chuckled.

Angel shook his head at her. "So why don't you want me to tell them?"

"It would be too awkward. Especially for mom and dad. I mean, how would you feel if some teenager popped out of nowhere and said, 'Hi mom. Hi dad.'?"

Angel gave her a look that said 'You got to be kidding me.'

"Oh. Right." D.J. turned away. "Never mind."

The two of them sat in silence for a while. Then D.J. reached up and wrapped her arms around her grandfather.

"I missed this, hugging you. You're so much fun to hug 'cuz you're all big and fat. Like a teddy bear, only with fangs." She smiled into his chest.

Angel frowned. "I'm not fat."

D.J. just smiled and hugged him tighter. Angel returned the hug and gently stroked her hair. He smiled down at his granddaughter.

TBC…

* * *

A/N: Aww, isn't that cute? Review please! I hope I'm not making D.J. and Abby seem too Mary-Sue-ish. Please tell me if I am. Thank you!


	4. That Overwhelming Feeling

****

Title: Daughters of the Unnatural

****

Part: 4: That Overwhelming Feeling

****

Author: Liayso

****

Disclaimer: The characters of the Angel and Buffyverse are not mine. I'm just borrowing them for this story. I do own the characters D.J. and Abby.

****

Summary: The daughter of The Key and The Destroyer sure has her hands full. Her twin sister wants to kill her and now she's stuck in the past. Can she possibly calm her raging sister down and get back to her own time? Lame summary, I know.

****

Rating: PG-13 for swearing and violence

****

Spoilers: Everything I guess. This story is set a couple of months after Angel's series finale.

****

A/N:

Lili: Ack! I made D.J. seem too Mary-Sueish? I'm sorry! Thanks for pointing it out though! Don't worry; she's going to get her butt kicked in the next few chapters, including this one. And I'll try to make her seem a bit more human, you know with the internal conflict and stuff. Also, you're English is really good. I probably have some grammar mistakes, because both my parents are Filipino immigrants and their English isn't exactly proper.

bob-the-blue: I did kind of take your suggestion. I was going to have D.J. and Abby call Angel "Gramps" anyway, but your suggestion of involving Spike made it a bit funnier. "Gramps" does kind of have a negative connotation. XD

Italicized words in between the dashes are flashbacks. Ex: _-Words, text, whatever-_

Now onto the story!

* * *

The vampire let out a roar when it turned into dust. Abby pulled her arm back from the falling dust particles. She had just taken out a vamp hideout of four vampires. She looked around her surroundings. It was a common vamp nest; junk was everywhere. Abby placed her stake down on a table, along with the sword she had gotten from D.J. the other night. Her clothes were still stained with blood from the demon that she had killed. How she longed for a bath.

Abby rummaged through the articles of clothing on the floor of the abandoned apartment, smelling each piece to see if it was decent enough to wear.

"Stupid D.J. It's her fault that I'm stuck here rummaging through trash like a homeless person." Abby muttered bitterly as she tossed aside a shirt with holes in it.

She came across a pair of jeans in front of a doorway. With hope in her heart, she pushed open the door and flipped on the lights. It was a bathroom, complete with a mildew-tiled bathtub. Abby settled for it.

__

A bath's a bath. She thought.

She set the clothes she had picked up onto the counter and turned the squeaky knobs. Cold water filled the tub as she took up a hairbrush and started brushing her hair. Looking into the mirror, she saw the smudges of dirt adorning her face. She stared at the bitter face before her as the bathtub filled up. Her face wasn't always so hard looking. Sure, her face had a usual devilish smirk, but it hardly ever held such anger and bitterness before. Abby set down the hairbrush and closed her eyes. She remembered that night very vividly, as if it just happened yesterday.

__

-Abby was knocked down to the floor. She was bruised, battered, bleeding, and broken. For the first time in her life, she was very afraid. Her attacker advanced a couple of steps towards her. Each of his steps thundered in Abby's ears. She shuffled back into a corner, her frightened wide eyes never leaving the demon before her.

"Prophecies are overrated anyway." The large demon raised his right arm. It turned into a pointed blade. Abby finally shut her scared eyes.

"Abby!"

Abby heard her sister call out, but she thought it was too late. In a matter of seconds, she would be slit in halves. She heard the swift swish of a blade being swung in the air, then the squish sound it made when it connected with flesh, then the crunching of bone, and finally the sound of a head thumping to the floor. However, it wasn't her head that fell. Abby opened her eyes to see her would-be-killer fall to the floor, headless. She moved her gaze to her twin sister. D.J. had a look of shock on her face as she stared down at the dead demon. She then looked to her sister. The two of them stared at each other for a brief minute in complete shock. Then D.J.'s look changed to one of concern. She dropped her sword and rushed to Abby's side. She enveloped her sister in a hug.

"Thank God and the Powers That Be that you're all right!" D.J. cried into her sister's shoulder.

But Abby was far from all right. She looked to the dead demon. The demon that had almost killed her. The demon that had managed to reduce her to a sniveling coward. The demon that her little sister had killed.-

Abby opened her eyes. For a split second, she felt humiliation and disgrace, but then those feelings changed to feelings of anger. She clenched her fists so tightly that her fingernails dug into her palms and drew blood. The bathtub was filled up now. She turned off the water, stripped down, and got in. Abby leaned back into the tub and started reflecting some more. She wasn't stupid; she knew she and D.J. were stuck in the past. The Orb of Meti had that kind of ability, she knew that. What she didn't know was why she ran away. It only angered her further that she had ran like a coward while D.J. stood her ground. Of course, she didn't know that the reason why D.J. didn't run was that she was too much in shock of the whole situation to move.

As Abby sat in the cold water thinking about everything, her rage towards her sister grew. D.J. was the cause of her humiliation, her anger. Abby was used to being the better fighter. When it was seen that D.J. might surpass her in that, Abby became enraged. She wouldn't let her little sister take what was important to her. She loved the thrill of a battle. She loved the praise her family gave her for a job well done. When it became possible that D.J. could take all that away from her, she snapped. She couldn't let that happen.

"It's settled then." Abby said to no one. "I will kill my sister."

But she couldn't do it, at least not in front of her family. The looks on their faces when it did happen would destroy her. She needed to get her little sister alone.

When Abby finished her bath, she got dressed and looked around the old apartment once more. She found a closet. Inside she found some knives and a crossbow. An evil looking smile appeared on her face.

* * *

D.J. ducked a punch from her grandfather, but Angel anticipated her dodge and kneed her in the head. She was sent flying into the basement wall. Angel freaked out. He rushed to his granddaughter's side.

"I'm sorry, D.J.!" Angel said as he helped her up

D.J. just smiled at him. "It's okay. What doesn't kill me can only make me stronger, right?"

Angel smiled back at her, but then found himself on the floor. D.J. had taken advantage of the situation and flipped her grandfather onto his back. She stood over him, smirking.

"You're learning quickly. That's good." From his spot on the floor, Angel swept his foot out, knocking D.J. to the ground. He realized that he couldn't take her too lightly.

D.J. fell with an "Ahh!" but she and Angel quickly got back and began sparring again. Angel was obviously the more skilled fighter, but D.J. was improving.

Dawn watched everything from her seat at the top of the basements steps. She chuckled at their little exchange of knockdowns. Angel's training was a little intense. Dawn wondered if Buffy had trained her as aggressively as Angel trained D.J., then she wouldn't have to rely on long distance attacks like the crossbow and magic. Of course, Buffy couldn't have been as aggressive as she could have been, since Dawn lacked the super strength. At least she was able to handle Giles and Willow's rigorous training in magic, with her being the mystical Key.

"Hey."

Dawn looked up and saw Connor. He sat down next to her on the steps. She smiled at him.

"Hi."

Connor motioned to the two training down below. "They're training again? Is it just me, or have they been spending a lot of time together lately?"

Dawn shrugged her shoulders. "I think you're dad's some kind of pedophile. He seems to like strong teenage girls. This case is strange, because she's not blonde."

"Hey, that's not fair. My dad's a vampire; of course, he's going to be much older than the people he meets. He's probably just happy that he found someone to teach. But I see your point with the young blonde preference."

Both of them chuckled. Dawn looked at Angel and D.J. exchanging blows.

"So he's trying to make her a female mini-Angel? Haha, I just pictured D.J. in a long black trench coat. Very funny." Dawn smiled at the fighting pair, and then looked to Connor. "We know your father's preference for girls, what about you? What's your preference?"

"Me? Well, I'm kind of the opposite of my dad." Connor leaned back into the steps. "Older and brunette, that's the type I usually go after."

"Oh." Dawn looked down at her feet. "How much older? Like a few years older? Or a millennia older?" Hey, she could have been older than time itself, being a mystical ball of energy.

"I don't know. It never really worked out with the older women." He turned to face Dawn and smiled. "But she would definitely have to be brunette."

Dawn blushed. D.J. finally noticed the two on the stairs, smiling and laughing amongst each other. She shouldn't have let herself be distracted because BAM! she was struck on the side of her head. D.J. stumbled to the floor.

"D.J., you have to stay focused. Focus is an important thing in battle. Don't get distracted." Angel extended a hand out and helped her up.

"Don't forget about balance, Dad." Connor called down to them.

"Yeah. Yeah. You lose your balance, you lose. You guys told me this about a zillion times already. I mean, uh, in the future." D.J. said, brushing herself off. "Can we take a break?"

Angel nodded. They all left the basement and D.J. immediately headed straight for the kitchen. Dawn went with her. Connor watched his father let out a tired sigh.

"So, what's with you and D.J.? When she first got here, you were all 'I don't trust her.' Now you're all buddy-buddy."

"She's a good kid that has a lot of potential. Plus, she's eager to learn." _Also, she's my granddaughter, as well as your daughter. _Angel thought. "And in no way am I a pedophile."

Connor chuckled. "You heard that?"

Angel nodded. "I also heard you flirting with Dawn."

Connor flushed a bit. Then he frowned. "Let me guess. You're going to tell me to back off her, aren't you? That I shouldn't even try since she's Buffy's sister."

"No. I say go for it."

"I mean it's not like you and Buffy are still going out. I don't see why-" Connor stopped mid-sentence and then looked surprised. "What? Really?" Angel nodded. "So say if I asked her out, you wouldn't protest against it or anything?"

Angel shook his head. "Even if I did you would just go out and do it anyway."

"Damn straight. I just can't believe you are giving a blessing."

"Well, a couple of days ago I wouldn't, but some things have happened to change my mind."

Connor raised an eyebrow. "What kind of things?"

Angel suddenly let out a small yelp. He turned to see D.J. behind him. Her eyes were narrowed and in her hand was a wooden stake. She had jabbed him in the side with it.

"Remember your promise?" D.J. turned on her heels and went to the basement.

"Uh, sorry, Connor." Angel followed his granddaughter.

When D.J. was certain that her father couldn't hear them, she began freaking out in her grandfather's face.

"You promised!"

"I didn't tell him anything."

"But you were about to! Gramps, no one can know that Connor and Dawn are my parents!"

Angel suddenly felt another presence in the room. He turned to the stairs and saw Illyria at the base of them. Angel became nervous.

"Illyria, uh…" Angel stammered. "What D.J. said…"

D.J. placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's okay Gramps. She knows."

Angel looked between the two. "She knows? She already knows? You told her? You told her before you told me?"

D.J. held up her hands to calm him down. "Whoa! What's with the double questions? She figured it out when she caught me calling Connor 'Dad' during the fight with the Halaman demons."

Angel looked towards Illyria. She only stared back at him. Angel looked back at D.J.

"And you trust her with your secret?"

"Illyria's pretty good at being a confidant. You know, with the not talking much."

"Okay then." Angel looked back at the Old One. "So, what are you doing down here?"

"You are teaching her too much. I do not want you to fully taint her with your half-breed ways." Illyria said with that usual superior tone.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Angel took a step towards the goddess.

D.J. got in front of him. "I think it's kind of a territory thing. She was my teacher first, ya know."

He looked down at her. "But you're my granddaughter. Don't I get like Granddad rights to teach you?"

D.J. looked between Illyria and Angel. Then she clapped her hands together.

"How about we train together?" She suggested with a cheery smile.

* * *

D.J. let out a pained groan as she stumbled into a room, which was going to be the Angel Investigations' library. Dawn was shelving her books and was startled when D.J. came in. D.J. sat herself at a table and let her head fall onto it, letting out another painful moan.

"Angel training you hard?" Dawn asked as she placed a book on a shelf.

Without lifting her head, D.J. replied. "Not just Angel, Illyria too." She now regretted having the both of them train her at the same time. "I'm so sore, it hurts even to breathe."

Dawn chuckled. "You sound like the potential slayers after a training session with Buffy and Kennedy. At least you have your super healing, they didn't have that yet."

"Yeah, but it doesn't seem to be kicking in, 'cuz these aches and pains aren't exactly going away." D.J. finally lifted her head off the table. She slid a book towards herself. "You know, I think I like being book girl better than being muscle girl. No bruises or broken bones involved."

Dawn turned back to the shelf, looked at a book, and then placed it in its rightful spot. "Nope, just paper cuts. Although those things can sting a lot."

D.J. giggled and flipped through the book in front of her. "Besides, we already have a lot of muscle people. We need more brainy people."

Dawn turned back to the girl and saw that the book she was reading was in Latin. She motioned to the book. "You know Latin?"

D.J. looked up. "Yeah. I learned it from the best when I was a kid."

"By best, do you mean me?" Dawn asked.

"Yeah."

The two of them smiled at each other. D.J. shut the book and helped her mother with the shelving. She picked up a book titled 'Portals, Dimensions, and Barriers'. D.J. eyed it curiously.

"Are you looking into your key heritage?" She asked.

"Uh, yeah." Dawn took the book from her. "I thought that maybe if I read some stuff, I could, you know, tap into that key part of me and create some portals or something. Without the messy bleeding ritual."

"Any luck?"

"Nope." She paused. "Am I able to do it in the future?"

"If you are, I wouldn't know. There wasn't a need to go dimension hopping in the future."

"Really? No one even tried to use me to open a dimension or anything?"

"No." D.J. paused. "Well, there was this one thing where this group wanted to use the essence of the key to call forth their master, but by then you were so strong with the magics, so they backed off you and went after-" D.J. caught herself. I shouldn't be telling you this." She quickly turned back to the bookshelf.

"Wait, there's another key? Like me?" Dawn asked.

"Kind of." D.J. weakly replied.

Dawn was about to ask more questions, but then Spike came in. He sat at the table and propped his feet onto it.

"Hey Nibblet." He turned to D.J. "Little Bit."

"Hey Spike."

"Hi. What brings you here?" D.J. asked, glad to steer the conversation away from the future.

"Boredom, Pet. Seems like we've been bloody waiting for a case forever." Spike leaned back in his chair. "I'm thinking about going out and look for that sister of yours. See for myself if she's really as strong as you say she is."

D.J. turned back to the bookshelf and shelved a book. "Well, good luck to you if you do."

"Come on now. She can't be that strong." Spike crossed his arms.

"She is. Especially when she's uber pissed off, like now."

"Please. I've killed two slayers. You guys aren't so tough." Spike paused. "No offense, Bit."

"None taken." Why should D.J. be offended? She wasn't a slayer; they only assumed she was since she was strong, but she wasn't. She was just vampire-powered.

Dawn shelved two more books. "If I recall, Spike, you got your ass kicked practically a zillion times by a slayer that was nearly a foot shorter than you." She turned around and smirked at him. Spike scowled in response and D.J. giggled. "Anyway, since you're so bored, how about you help us with the shelvage?" She tossed a book to him.

Spike caught the book. "All right, but only because you're my little Nibblet." He touched the book to the top of Dawn's head and shelved it. They shelved their books in silence for like five minutes.

Dawn broke that silence. "Hey D.J."

D.J. looked to her. "Yeah?"

"You and Abby are twins, right?"

"That's right."

"Who's older?"

"Abby is, by three minutes."

Spike stopped shelving and smiled. "Well ain't that adorable. You're the little baby of the group." D.J. blushed in embarrassment.

"Really? You're the youngest?" Dawn asked. D.J. nodded. "Do we treat you like a little kid? I got a lot of that growing up because I was the youngest."

"The two of you and Illyria didn't treat me like a little kid. Everyone else did, but you guys didn't."

Dawn smiled. "That's good."

Spike smirked. "So Peaches treats you like a little tyke? Well, I'm going to have to kick his ass for that."

"Oh god! Angel and Connor are the worst! They're so overprotective, it's annoying! But then again, sometimes it's kind of humorous." D.J. shook her head. "It was so funny when they freaked out when you let me smoke a cigarette. Angel was so mad." She let out a giggle. "He was all 'I will not let you corrupt her and Abby!'."

Spike let out a laugh, but Dawn looked a little worried for some reason unknown to her.

"You smoke?"

D.J. shook her head. "It was only that one time. Besides, I didn't want them spazzing out on me all the time."

"That's too bad. I would have liked having a ciggy buddy."

D.J. smiled at him then realized something. "Damn it you guys! How is it that you made me talk about the future?"

Spike chuckled. "We just talk, Bit. It's not our fault you're so eager to expose your deepest darkest secrets."

He smirked at her and D.J. just scowled back at him. The scowl on her face irked Spike a bit. It was strangely familiar.

* * *

Angel touched a blood mark on an alley wall. He rubbed the blood in between his thumb and his index finger.

"It was just here. Let's go."

They had finally gotten a couple of cases, and had split into two groups. One group consisted of Gunn, Illyria, Dawn, and Connor. They took on a case dealing with a demonic rat infestation. The other group consisted of Angel, Spike, and D.J. They were tracking a big lizard demon, maybe even two or three of them.

"D.J., get in between Spike and me." Angel led the way into the alley.

D.J. rolled her eyes. She turned to Spike and mouthed a silent 'See what I mean?' to him. Spike only gave her a silent chuckle in reply. She fell into her position and gripped the sword in her hand tightly. She reviewed all the lessons she learned in her mind.

__

Okay, tight grip, focus, and balance. I think I can do this.

The three walked deeper into the alley. Out of nowhere, the lizard demon jumped in front of them. The demon stood at nearly eight feet in height. It was scaly and it had a pointy tongue that slithered in and out of its mouth. It let out a loud roar. D.J. froze. She completely forgot everything Angel and Illyria taught her. While Spike and Angel leaped away, she stood dumbfounded and the demon knocked her into the side of a dumpster.

"D.J.!"

Angel tried to get to his granddaughter, but another lizard demon appeared in front of him. It shot out its tongue at him, looking to pierce his brains, but Angel dodged it. Spike tackled this second lizard demon from the side. It got up and ran further down into the alley. He chased after it. Angel turned his attention back to the first lizard demon and his granddaughter. D.J. leaned her weight against the dumpster and shook the dizziness from her head. The demon let out another roar. Figuring that D.J. was an easy target, it lunged for her. Angel tackled it before it reached her and was soon struggling with it on the ground.

D.J. was finally able to fully compose herself. She mentally kicked herself for freezing up. She grabbed her sword from the ground and started to run towards her grandfather, but a third lizard demon jumped in front of her. D.J. jumped back, startled. Its tongue slithered in and out of its mouth at her. D.J. looked to Angel; the demon had pulled Angel up and had thrown him down the alley. It went after him. She would have to face this demon alone. The lizard made the first move. Like the others, it shot out its tongue at her, but D.J. sidestepped it. She quickly gripped her sword with both hands and sliced through the extended tongue. The demon pulled back, cried out in agony, and began flailing about. D.J. took the opportunity to strike. Her sword slit into the scaly flesh and pierced its heart. The demon stopped flailing and it fell to the pavement with a thud as D.J. pulled her sword out of it. D.J. stared at the corpse with disbelief.

"I can't believe I actually got it."

"Neither can I."

The voice behind D.J. was very familiar. She froze up when she felt what seemed to be a crossbow pointed to the back of her head. D.J. immediately knew it was her sister.

"Drop your sword and turn around."

D.J. did what she was told. She gulped hard when she faced Abby. The crossbow was now pointed at her forehead.

"Abby…" D.J. started.

"Don't. Say. A. Word."

D.J. immediately stopped talking. Abby looked to the demon corpse.

"Impressive. You've certainly learned a lot. But I thought I told you to stop trying to be the hero." Abby glared at her sister while she remained silent.

"D.J.!" Angel had just taken out his demon and was now running towards his granddaughters.

"Damn it!" Abby muttered. She aimed the crossbow at her grandfather and pulled the trigger.

"No!" D.J. cried out in desperation. She reached for the crossbow.

The arrow slammed into Angel's shoulder. He stopped and grunted from the pain. D.J. tried frantically to retrieve the crossbow from her sister but Abby elbowed her in the face. D.J. fell to the ground on her butt. Angel grabbed Abby from behind, but she spun around in his arms and kneed him in the crotch. She jumped back as Angel fell to the ground, his face contorted in pain.

"You can't protect her forever. She will die." With those words, Abby took off once again.

Both Angel and D.J. could only watch as Abby sped off. Neither could move. They heard footsteps behind them and turned their heads to see Spike covered in demon lizard blood.

Seeing the looks on their faces, all he could ask was, "What the bloody hell happen to you two?"

* * *

"Oh god!" Dawn exclaimed. "I have to take like ten showers in order to get the stink of rat demon off me!"

They had just gotten back from their extermination of the rat infestation. They stood in the Hyperion lobby putting away their weapons and tools.

"They were so numerous. It seemed as if there was no end to their onslaught." Illyria stated.

Gunn shuddered. "I hate rats. Especially when they're jumbo-sized and all over the place." He looked over the scratches on his arms. "Do you think we have to get rabies shots or something?"

Connor chuckled as he put away his axe. They all looked up when they heard the hotel doors open and close. A sudden gloom fell upon the hotel as Angel, Spike and a sullen D.J. walked in. They all knew what had happened.

"You had a run in with Miss Scary, didn't you?" Gunn asked.

Angel only said, "Yeah."

Everyone turned their gaze to D.J. who had her eyes fixed down on the floor. Avoiding eye contact with everyone, she let out a quiet "I'll be in my room," and went upstairs.

* * *

Connor stood in front of D.J.'s bedroom door. He was dressed in fresh clothes and his hair was damp from showering off. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door. A quiet "Come in," was heard on the other side. Connor stepped in and found D.J. on her bed. She was sitting with her back against the headboard. She hugged a pillow against her chest and played with its seams.

"Hey." Connor said as he stood in front of the bed.

"Hey." D.J. answered unenthusiastically.

Connor sat on the corner of the bed. "I thought you said the basement was the place to brood." He tried lightening the mood.

"It's your place to brood. Besides, I'm kind of sick of the basement." D.J. said, remembering her rigorous training sessions.

"Are you all right?"

"It just hurts. It hurts that she's mad at me and hates me. She's my best friend."

"Not much of a best friend if she's trying to kill you."

"It's a thin line between love and hate."

"I know what you mean."

There was a pause between father and daughter. Connor stared at the sad girl. He was filled with concern for her, but he didn't know why.

"Do you want anything? A snack or a drink?"

D.J. shook her head. "I just want to rest."

"Then rest." Connor helped her into bed and tucked her in. "Maybe in the morning you will feel better."

"Thank you." D.J. said quietly, closing her eyes.

Connor stood up. "Good night, D.J."

"Good night."

Connor brushed the hair from her face. He gave D.J. a final looked and closed the door behind him. Angel was waiting in the hallway.

"Is she okay?" He asked his son.

"She's a bit depressed. She's sleeping now, you shouldn't bother her." Connor stared at the door. "I can't explain it, but whenever I'm with her I get this weird feeling. Like I want to keep all the bad stuff away from her and keep her safe. It's kind of overwhelming."

"Really…"

Connor shook his head. "I don't know. It's strange."

"Not so strange." Angel added in his mind, _It's not strange that you want to protect her, because she is your daughter and you are her father. It's not strange._

"It's getting late. I should probably get some shuteye. G'night, Dad." Connor walked away.

"Good night, son." Angel walked to his own room.

TBC….

* * *

A/N: Review please! They are always welcomed! Even if it's criticism or flames!

Preview for the next chapter:

Feeling like D.J. has gone through enough drama, Angel decides to let the gang take her out to the amusement park for some fun. Unfortunately, for them, their day of amusement is interrupted when Abby decides to attack innocent people to get D.J.'s attention. Can D.J. stop her or will she breakdown?


	5. Breakdown

****

Title: Daughters of the Unnatural  
**Part**: 5: Breakdown  
**Author**: Liayso  
**Disclaimer**: The characters of Angel and Buffy are not mine. I'm just borrowing them for this story. I do own the characters D.J. and Abby.

****

Summary: The daughter of The Key and The Destroyer sure has her hands full. Her twin sister wants to kill her and now she's stuck in the past. Can she possibly calm her raging sister down and get back to her own time? Lame summary, I know.  
**Rating**: PG-13 for swearing and violence  
**Spoilers**: Everything I guess. This story is set a couple of months after Angel's series finale.

**  
A/N:** Whee! Another chapter! Again thanks everyone for the reviews. This chapter is going to be a bit longer than the other ones, but that's because a whole bunch of stuff happens. Enjoy!

* * *

D.J. looked among the books on the bookcase. It was the next day and she was in the library, looking for a book. She had read this book many times before in the future and inside it was a way to get her sister back. She trailed her fingers along the book bindings until she found what she was looking for. D.J. pulled out the book and flipped through it.

"Yup. This is it."

She walked towards the chest that held magical items and such. She rummaged through everything and pulled out the herbs she needed along with a small vial. She tucked the items into the pocket of her sweater. She got up, with the book in hand and headed to the door. When she opened it, she found Dawn on the other side.

"There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

D.J. smiled at her mother shyly. "You should get use to me being in the library. If you can't find me, I'm most likely in here."

"I'll remember that." Dawn grabbed D.J.'s wrist. "Come on!"

"Where are you taking me?" D.J asked as she was dragged out of the library.

* * *

"Okay, you're all freaking me out with all that smiling. What's going on?"

D.J. stared at her family. Everyone was sitting on the lobby couch and each of them had a smile on their face, except for Illyrian. Gunn stepped forward.

"Well, we all have been thinking and we thought that you could use a break."

"A break?" D.J. raised an eyebrow.

Angel nodded. "I've been pushing you hard with all that training and all the cases I've been taking you on."

"And not to mention all that Abby stuff." Spike chimed in.

"We thought you could use a little release. Have a little fun." Connor smiled at her.

"What did you guys have in mind?"

Dawn grinned even wider. "We're going to spend the day at the amusement park down by the pier."

Angel stepped up to the girl. "What do you say, D.J.?"

"I'd love to go to the amusement park, but you and Spike can't come with us."

"That's okay, Bit. We'll be right here. Go on and ride the Ferris wheel for me."

D.J. smiled at Spike. She then looked at the rest of her family. Each of them had a pleading look on their faces. D.J. really wanted to go with them, but was it appropriate to go out when Abby's still mad as hell? D.J. let out a small sigh.

"All right. Let me get ready, okay?" D.J. turned and headed for the stairs.

"Sure. Take your time." Angel called out after her.

When D.J. reached her room, she placed the book on top of her dresser. She pulled the items from her pocket and placed them into the top drawer. She gave the items a long hard look before shutting the drawer.

"I hope I don't have to use these things on you, Abby." She said quietly.

D.J. hurried and got ready. When she went back downstairs, she found everyone ready to go.

"I'm ready."

"Cool. Let's go." Connor got up and headed for the door. Gunn and Dawn followed suit. D.J. took a step forward and she noticed Illyria wasn't following.

"Aren't you coming with us, Illyria?"

Illyria stared at her. "You wish for me to accompany you, child?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, you're not sun-resistant like Angel and Spike." D.J. took a hold of her wrist and looked up at her with pleading eyes. "Come with us, please?"

Illyria gave her a very tiny smile that was brief. "All right. I shall come."

"Wow. It's not everyday that someone asks Illyria to do something and she actually does it." Gunn stuck his hands in his pockets.

"Unlike you, this girl is actually polite."

Dawn and Connor snickered. Gunn rolled his eyes. "Let's go." They all exited the door.

Angel went over, opened the door and called out after them.

"Have a good time! Be safe! Don't stay out too late and be back before dawn!"

Gunn gave Angel a wave of his hand to show that he understands. Spiked walked up behind Angel.

"Look at you. Playing concerned parent for all the little kiddies."

Angel shut the door and looked at him. "I'm just looking out for D.J. She's just a kid."

"She's fifteen years old, not a baby in diapers you bloody ponce. She can take care of herself if need be. Stop being such a wanker." Spike lit a cigarette.

Angel rolled his eyes at him. "Whatever Spike."

Spike puffed a cloud of smoke into his face and smirked at him. "So what are we supposed to do while they are out stuffing their faces with cotton candy?"

Angel shrugged. "I don't know. We could play checkers."

* * *

"What is the point?" Illyria asked Gunn and D.J.

The three of them were standing in front of a game booth. It was the game where the bottles were lined up in a pyramid and you have to throw the ball at it. Illyria had one of the balls in the palm of her hand.

"The point is to knock down that pyramid of bottles with these balls. If you do, you get a prize."

Illyria just stared at the ball. Gunn chuckled

D.J. stepped to her. "Well, think about it like this. You're at your temple, Vahla Ha'nesh. Your enemy had set up a base or something just over there." D.J. pointed at the bottles. "The geography of the land prevents you from doing a full frontal attack. So what do you do? You try a long distance attack and throw the ball." D.J. smiled.

Illyria stared at the ball. Then she threw it. The ball knocked down all the bottles. The gamekeeper widened his eyes. His cigarette fell out of his mouth in disbelief. No one ever knocked down all the bottles with just one ball. He shook his head to gain some composure.

"We have a winner."

He grabbed a giant pink teddy bear and placed it in Illyria's hands. D.J. and Gunn began to laugh. The sight of Illyria with a giant pink teddy bear was a funny sight to see. The three of them walked away from the booth. Illyria stared at the stuffed animal in her hands.

"This thing's sickeningly cuteness offends me."

D.J. giggled. She spotted Dawn and Connor walking and waved to them. "Hey you guys! Over here!"

The two of them saw her and walked over. Dawn was holding a large polar bear stuffed animal.

"How cute!" D.J. motioned to it.

Dawn smiled. "Connor won it for me. Practically broke the strength game." Connor rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, embarrassed. Everyone laughed. Illyria only gave a smile in amusement.

"So what do we do now?" Connor asked.

"How 'bout we take a break? My feet are killing me." Dawn said sitting down on a bench.

They had done a lot in the past few hours. They rode the roller coaster, the Ferris wheel and the bumper carts. They ate a whole bunch of stuff in between the rides; actually, Connor and D.J. ate a whole bunch of stuff. They didn't even throw up on any of the rides. D.J. spotted an ice cream cart. She tugged on Gunn's shirtsleeve.

"Can we get some ice cream?"

Gunn raised an eye at the girl. "You want to eat? Again? Dang girl, you're just like Connor. Your stomach's a black hole."

D.J. chuckled. She dragged Gunn over to the cart. The vendor looked bored. He was listening to a small radio. D.J. ordered a strawberry ice cream cone while Gunn bought chocolate. As Gunn paid for the two ice cream cones, D.J. listened to what the radio was saying. It seemed to be a news station.

"…Police are trying to identify the young girl who has attacked the Jackson's Camping and Sporting Goods store from security tapes. She has taken everyone inside as hostages. No motives for her actions have been clarified, but police have said that they heard the girl yell about her sister…"

D.J. suddenly dropped her ice cream cone. It fell to the pavement with a splat.

"Oh my god."

* * *

"King me." Spike said with a smirk.

Angel scowled back at him. They had decided to play checkers, and Spike was winning. Suddenly, Angel's cell phone began to ring.

"Hello?"

"Angel, we got a problem." Gunn spoke. He and the others were driving in Angel's car to the store.

"What kind of problem?"

"A big problem. Connor, turn up the radio." Connor did just that. "Listen." Gunn held the phone to the radio.

"…it is estimated that the girl has taken about eight people hostage along with two police officers who went inside the sporting goods store to investigate. The subject appears to be very hostile…

Gunn brought the phone back up to his ear. "It's Abby man."

"Are you sure it's her?"

The radio continued the story. "Police had no choice but to send in a sniping team, however the girl has dodged all shots and even shot back with what appears to be a crossbow…"

"Oh yeah. Pretty sure. Look, can you meet us at the Jackson's Camping and Sporting Goods store? Do you know where that is?"

"Yeah." Angel paused. It was the same store he fought Connor in right before the memory wipe spell took place. "We're on our way." They both hanged up.

"They were sniping her!" D.J. shrieked.

"D.J., calm down. Take a deep breath. We'll get through this." Gunn tried to calm the frantic girl down.

"Oh yeah. I'll calm down. I'll calm down after my sister stops attacking people and the police stop trying to kill her!" D.J. began to shake.

Dawn took a hold of D.J.'s hand and gave it a tight squeeze. Connor looked back at his daughter. He then faced Gunn.

"Can't you go any faster?"

"I'm going as fast as the speed limit will let me." Gunn made a turn down the street.

"Screw the speed limit! Just get us there!"

"Connor, don't yell at me if you don't want me to crash the car."

"Why is she doing this? I don't understand. Attacking innocent people…" D.J. softly whispered.

"She seeks your attention. She wishes to do battle with you for you have shamed and humiliated her. She seeks to earn back her pride." Illyria did her best to comfort her pupil.

D.J. still shook with fear and disbelief. Dawn still held her hand tightly. "It will be all right."

Gunn turned a corner. They were almost at the store. They saw a bunch of police cars and a newscast in the parking lot. A big crowd was forming as well.

"Doesn't look like we'll get through the front. Let's try the back."

Gunn turned the car around. The back was surprisingly empty. The back door was bolted shut. The police must have assumed that Abby wouldn't be able to escape that way. They all piled out of Angel's car.

"How are we supposed to get in?" Dawn asked.

D.J. looked up and saw an open window on the second floor. "There." She pointed up.

"Unless you can fly, I don't think we'll be getting through there." Gunn remarked. He noticed that she wasn't paying any attention to him. Instead, she had picked up a metal trashcan and placed it down on the ground. "D.J.?"

She didn't answer him. She picked up a wooden crate and placed it next to the trashcan. The items were lined up with the window. D.J. walked back a few feet then began to sprint. She ran up the crate and leaped off the trashcan. The can tipped over, spilling its contents out while D.J. grabbed onto the windowsill. She pulled herself through and was inside the building. The others stared after her in awe.

"So, anyone else going to try that?" Gunn asked.

* * *

Abby looked around at the people before her. The adults had their arms and feet tied together while the children clung close to their parents. She hadn't bothered to tie up the two police officers. She had broken their legs; they wouldn't be going anywhere. Abby had her crossbow in her hand; the sword she got from D.J. was attached to her back in a makeshift sheath. She looked around once again and saw two little girls clinging to their mother, crying. She walked over to them.

"Are these your daughters?" Abby asked the woman. She only nodded. Abby turned to the bigger child. "Are you the older sibling?" The girl nodded; tears were streaming down her face.

"I bet your little sister's annoying, isn't she? Does she take all of your stuff without asking?" The girl nodded again. "Doesn't that make you mad? Do you want me to take care of her?" Abby aimed her crossbow at the younger girl's head. She let out a startled cry and clung even tighter to her mother.

"Abby!"

Abby turned her head to see D.J. standing on the second floor. Abby stood up and smiled.

"I thought you would come, sooner or later, lil sis."

"Abby, what are you doing?"

"Me? I guess I'm playing the villain and you're here to be the big hero and save them, aren't you?"

"Save them? From you?" D.J. choked out.

"What's the matter little sis? You can't save them?" Abby taunted her. "No, of course you can't. You know why? It's because you're weak! That's why!"

"Abby please stop this. This is between you and me. Let them go."

She ignored her sister's plea. "It's understandable. I mean, at heart, you're really one of them. All helpless and scared. Anxiously waiting for someone to save them. Wondering if they'll see the next day."

"Abby… what do you want from me?"

Abby cocked her crossbow and pointed it straight at her heart. "I want you to die, Bitch!" She pulled the trigger.

D.J. shut her eyes tight. When she opened them, she looked down at her hand. It gripped the arrow that Abby had shot at her. Only the very tip of the head had pricked her flesh, drawing out only a drop of blood. Had D.J. reacted any second later, she'd be dead by now.

"You tried to kill me…" D.J. stared at her sister with disbelief. "You almost killed me…"

"Lucky catch. Let's see if you're lucky a second time." Abby aimed the crossbow at her again. Her finger pressed the trigger.

D.J. couldn't move. She was frozen in place. The arrow seemed to be heading towards her very slowly, but she still couldn't move. Luckily, for her, Connor managed to tackle D.J. down to the floor as the arrow whizzed above them. He had followed D.J. through the window. When they sat up on the floor, Connor gripped D.J.'s shoulders lightly.

"Are you all right?" He asked searching her eyes.

Tears filled those eyes. D.J.'s voice was blank at first. "She almost killed me…" Her face scrounged up and the tears began to fall. "She almost killed me!"

D.J. broke down and started crying aloud. She shook her head. "I can't reach her! She's too far gone! I lost her! She's too far gone!"

Her sobs became uncontrollable. They pierced Connor's ears as well as his heart. Connor pulled the hysterical girl to his chest and hugged her tight. He began to rock her gently back and forth.

"Shhh… It's going to all right." D.J. continued to sob into his chest as he cradled her in his arms.

Downstairs, a loud crash was heard. Illyria had punched and kicked her way through the solid brick wall to get in. Gunn and Dawn followed behind her.

"Liberate the humans. I shall deal with the girl." Illyria commanded. Gunn and Dawn nodded at her and ran to the hostages.

Abby aimed her crossbow at the blue goddess and shot at her. Illyria easily caught the arrow and snapped it in half. Out of arrows, Abby threw aside the crossbow and charged at the Old One. She sent a kick to her midsection, but Illyria blocked it. Abby sent a left hook to her head, but Illyria ducked it. Abby sent blow after blow at the blue one, but Illyria dodged and blocked each one with increasing difficultly.

Abby was quick and aggressive. She had not let Illyria take the offensive at a single moment. Abby finally managed to land a punch on the Old One's nose and Illyria stumbled back. Abby grabbed her by the arm and swung her into a rack of camping gear.

"You know, if you hadn't taught that stupid bitch, we wouldn't be doing this now."

Suddenly, Abby fell to the floor. She turned her head to see her attacker. Angel was standing before her, holding a metal bat. He had struck her from behind.

"Oh you god damn asshole!" She growled. Abby got up and lunged at her grandfather.

Gunn and Dawn had managed to free all the hostages. They had the ones that could walk help the ones that couldn't. Dawn looked around.

"Where are D.J. and Connor?" She cried out.

Gunn looked to the second floor and saw them sitting on the ground. "Up there!" He looked back to Angel, Spike, and Illyria fighting Abby. "You go see if they're all right. I'll go help the others."

Dawn nodded at him and ran upstairs to find Connor holding a sobbing D.J. She was crying hysterically into his chest. Dawn walked over and knelt by them.

"What happened?"

"Abby almost killed her. Shot an arrow straight for her heart." Connor answered over D.J.'s head.

"We should get her out of this place." She gently pulled D.J. away from Connor and helped her up.

Meanwhile downstairs was an all out war zone. Gunn had joined in the fight. He picked up volleyball chucked it at Abby. She caught the ball and chucked it right back at him, right at his head. Gunn fell to the floor. Suddenly, she was knocked down from behind by a bowling ball that was thrown at her.

"Strike!" Spike yelled as Abby fell to the floor. He had thrown the ball

Angel yelled at Spike. "Don't kill her!"

Spike glared at Angel and when he looked forward, he found Abby in front of him and boy was she pissed. She punched Spike and he flew into a pile of plastic kerosene oil tanks. She pulled out a knife and threw it at him. Spike moved to the side and it pierced one of the tanks. Illyria took this moment to strike Abby from behind, but Abby sensed her presence and sent a kick in her direction. Illyria was flung backwards into a camping tent. She became entangled in it. Spike pulled out the knife from the tank and threw it back at Abby. She sidestepped it and the knife went pass her and into Angel's shoulder.

"Spike!"

"Sorry Peaches!"

Angel growled and pulled the knife out of him. He tossed it aside and stalked towards Abby. Abby anticipated him and did a spinning kick to his head. Angel dodged the kick but didn't expect her to counter with her arm. She struck him and he flew into the wall. Spike got up and picked up the kerosene tank that was leaking oil and chucked it at Abby. Oil spilt out in a trail as it flew threw the air. Abby punched it aside. She drew out her sword. Spike took a hold of another kerosene tank and threw it at her again. She cut through it, kerosene spilling all over her. Abby picked up the bowling ball from earlier and chucked it at his head, knocking Spike to the ground. Both Illyria and Angel had regained their composure and they lunged at the girl. She swung her sword at them. They jumped back.

"You can't stop me!" She yelled out.

"Think again, Pet."

Abby looked at Spike. He had gotten back up and a cigarette was in his mouth. He pulled out his lighter, lit the ciggy, and then flicked it into the kerosene trail. Everyone jumped back and away from the trail as it erupted into flames. A wall of fire separated Abby away from the others. Seeing as how she was covered in kerosene oil, Abby figured walking through a wall of fire wouldn't be a good idea. She glared at them through the flames.

"This isn't over! Not by a bloody long shot!" Abby growled at them. She then turned and ran to a window. She knocked the glass out with the hilt of her sword and jumped through. The broken glass tore into her flesh.

Angel only watched her as she took off. Then he turned to Connor and Dawn coming down the stairs with D.J. Her sobs were quieter now, but she was still crying. They all turned at the sound of sirens blasting from outside. The police were finally making a move into the building.

"That's our cue to make an escape." Gunn said.

Angel nodded and took D.J. from her parents and lifted her into his arms. They all left the burning building.

* * *

Angel and Connor watched from the doorway as Dawn tucked D.J. into her bed. She curled up into a fetal position under the covers. Dawn gave her form a sad look before shooing the two men out and closing the door behind her.

"It's got to be one of the worst feelings in the world. To have someone that you care about so much hate you and try to kill you." She shook her head at the door; her eyes were tearing up a bit.

Connor turned to his father. "What are we going to do, Dad?"

Angel shook his head. "I'm not sure. It's been a long day. We all could use some rest." He turned around and walked down the hall.

Connor and Dawn were left in the hallway. Dawn stepped up to Connor.

"I feel so awful for D.J. I look at her sad face and all I want to do is hold her."

"I know what you mean. What should we do?"

"I think we should go find Abby."

"And then what? Tell her to be nice to her sister and stop picking on her? That is if she let's us get a single word out."

"Well we can't sit on our asses and do nothing. I have to do something." She looked at D.J.'s door again. She then turned back to Connor. "Look if you don't want to come with me, don't, but I'm going to go find her either way."

"I'll come with you. I can't let you go toe to toe with Abby by yourself." Dawn smiled at him. "How are we going to get out of her exactly? I don' think my dad will just let us out through the front door."

Once again, Dawn smiled. She started walking to her room. Connor followed her. She crossed her bedroom over to the window and opened it.

"We go out Dawn-style: through the window," She stuck her head out "…and you guys had to pick the room with no fire escape or a drain pipe next to it for me to climb down from." She shook her head.

Connor walked over to her. "Move please." Dawn stepped aside. He then leaped out the window.

"Connor!"

Dawn tried to grab him before he jumped but only grabbed air. She rushed to the window and saw Connor land on his feet nimbly down below. He turned around and opened his arms wide.

"Jump!" He called up to her.

"You've got to be kidding me!"

"No, I'm not. Jump!"

"But…" Dawn hesitated.

"Jump! It will be okay! I'll catch you. Trust me."

Dawn stared at the boy down below her. She took a deep breath and then climbed onto the windowsill. She leaped from it. She closed her eyes as she fell and let out a small yelp. She was sure she would hit the pavement but then she landed perfectly into Connor's arms. Dawn opened her eyes to meet his crystal blue ones. She felt her breath get caught in her throat. After awhile of staring into his eyes, she managed to say something.

"Uh, thanks for catching me." She began to blush.

"You're welcome." Connor began to blush back. He put her down reluctantly; he had liked holding her. She felt so right in his arms. "I told you I would catch you."

"My hero." Dawn smiled at Connor. He smiled back at her. "So, do you think you can track Abby?"

"Probably. Come on."

The two of them headed to the store. Police cars filled the perimeter, as well as a couple of fire trucks. The fire that Spike started earlier was put out. Dawn and Connor stood across the street from everything. They hid behind a building corner.

"I can't get a hold of her scent here. I need to get there where the scent would be strongest." Connor peeked around the corner.

"But the cops are all over the place. It's not like we can jus walk onto the crime scene and say, 'Hi. We're looking for the girl that attacked this place earlier. Mind if we sniff around?'." Dawn shook her head. "Do you think maybe you could go in and out of there without them seeing you?"

"Maybe. Should I try?" He started at her.

Dawn looked around. Something caught her eye further down the street. "Maybe you don't have to." She started down the street.

"Dawn?" Connor looked at her jogging form before going after her.

What Dawn saw was a blood splotch on the wall of a building. The two of them knelt down before it. Connor pressed his index finger onto the dry blood and smelt it.

"Do you think it's Abby's blood?" Dawn asked.

"Yeah." Connor seemed unnerved.

Sensing this, Dawn asked, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just that the blood smells a little familiar." Connor shook his head. "Anyway, I got the scent. She went this way." He stood up and started walking. Dawn followed close behind him.

"Look at you. You're like a bloodhound. All tracky and cute."

Connor stopped walking and looked at her. "What?"

Dawn suddenly blushed and realized that she had called him 'cute'. She quickly said "Nothing," and hastened her walk.

Connor smiled after her and took long strides to catch up with her. For a couple of minutes they walked side by side in silence.

Connor looked to Dawn. "So, you think I'm cute?"

Dawn stopped walking and Connor stood before her smirking. She blushed furiously. In quick motions, she spun him around and gave him a slight shove forward.

"Just keep walking, Boy Wonder."

Connor chuckled and again they walked in silence. He gave a sideway glance to the girl next to him. He then remembered his talk with D.J. in the basement.

__

'Could she be the one?' He thought. He was definitely attracted to her; she was absolutely beautiful. It wasn't just a physical attraction either. Connor loved being around Dawn. The tow of them had so much in common. He could relate to her more than anyone else in the world and she to him. Then it hit him. Connor was falling for the girl beside him. He smiled at that realization. Dawn saw his smile.

"You're making fun of me in your head, aren't you?" She broke his thoughts.

"Huh? What?" Connor became all flustered. "No, I wasn't."

"Yeah. Sure." Dawn rolled her eyes but then smiled. "So which way do we go?"

Connor looked around. "This way."

The two of them followed Abby's scent to an abandoned apartment building. A couple of the windows were boarded up with rotting wood and the floor and stairs creaked, give off an old feeling.

"So do you have a plan?" Connor asked Dawn as they walked up the steps.

"Not really." She said nervously. Now that she was here, she had lost the confidence and the passion she had back at the hotel.

Connor took a hold of her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. "It will be okay."

The two of them entered a darkened room. Suddenly, Connor pushed Dawn back and she fell to the ground in the hallway. A loud shattering sound was heard in the darkness along with a loud grunt. Dawn fumbled up and searched the wall for a light switch. She found one and flipped it on. Dawn saw Connor on the floor; pieces of a broken vase surrounded his head. Abby stood before them.

"Why are you here?" Each of Abby's words was coated with anger. Her blue eyes were dark and narrowed.

"We just want to talk." Dawn said as she helped Connor stand up.

"Let me guess. You guys came to tell me to play nice with my little sister." Abby placed her hands on her hips. Connor and Dawn remained silent. Both were unsure on how to reply. Abby shook her head. "I knew it. I won't do it. You can't make me do anything anymore."

Abby turned and started walking away, but Connor stepped forward and grabbed a hold of her arm.

"Abby-"

With a growl, Abby pushed her father into the wall. "Shut up!"

Connor grabbed a hold of her arm, twisted it behind her, and slammed her against the wall. "Listen to me!"

"No!" She pulled free and punched him in the face. He punched back with all the strength he had. Abby fell to the floor. She was drained from the battle earlier, whereas Connor was as fresh as a daisy.

"Your sister's a complete wreck because of what you did to her." Connor yelled at her form on the floor.

"Good." Abby got up and launched her self at her father. The two of them tumbled backwards and went through a window.

"Connor!" Dawn called out after them. She quickly ran down the stairs.

Father and daughter fell to the street with glass shattering all around them. A shard of glass had cut Connor's forehead and he was bleeding. Abby quickly composed herself and grabbed a hold of her father. She pinned him to the brick wall of the building. She pulled out a knife and held it to her throat. Dawn appeared outside with them but froze when she saw Connor's current position.

Connor stared at the knife and then into the eyes of the angry girl before him. "How could you do that? D.J.'s your sister, your family. How could you just try to kill her like that?"

Abby still held the knife to his throat. "Please. Like you've never tried to kill your family." She let out a small laugh. "It must be genetic."

Connor stared at her funny. "What?"

"Gramps killed his family when he became a vampire. You tried to kill him many times, oh and you killed your daughter, Jasmine." She smirked. "Now I'm going to kill D.J."

Connor's eyebrows furrowed together at what she was implying. "What are you trying to say?"

Abby pulled the knife away and took a step back. She threw her arms in the air. "Oh come on! You can't be that dense," she paused, "**_Dad_.**" Connor widened his eyes in shock, but Abby kept talking. "I'm surprised that Little-Miss-Goody-Two-Shoes didn't tell you. It's not like her to keep secrets."

Connor was stunned tremendously. It took him awhile to form words in his mouth. "You're my daughter?"

Abby rolled her eyes at him. "You're a little slow." She turned to Dawn. "What did you see in him? I'm glad I inherited your brains, Mom."

Dawn's eyes widened as well. She looked from Abby to Connor and then back to Abby. "M-mom?" She repeated what Abby said. Abby rolled her eyes and snorted.

"God! You guys are pathetic!" She turned back to Connor. He was still staring in disbelief. She swung a punch at him and he fell to the ground with a thud. She stared down at him. "You just had to build me up like that. You just had to build me up so that I would fall down so hard." With those words, she took off down the street.

Dawn rushed to Connor's side and helped him sit up. The two of them just stared at each other in shock. Connor looked away. D.J. and Abby were his daughters. He looked back at Dawn. No, they weren't just his, they were Dawn's too. Neither of them knew what to say to the other. Together they sat in stunned disbelief.

* * *

There was a sort of gloom cast over the hotel. Everyone did their best to keep themselves occupied to ignore the depressing mood. Angel was looking through past case files. Gunn was playing solitaire. Spike was drinking and Illyria seemed to be talking to a potted plant. Soft footsteps were heard coming down the stairs. They all looked up from what they were doing and saw D.J. standing at the base of the steps.

"D.J…" Angel said softly.

"Hi." She said meekly. "I couldn't sleep." She looked down.

"Did you want anything? A snack maybe?" Angel asked.

D.J. shook her head. "I just don't want to be alone."

"Well, would you like to play cards with me?" Gunn asked as he gathered up the cards and shuffled them.

"Sure." D.J. walked over to him and sat opposite of him. "What are we going to play?"

"Is Speed all right with you? Do you know how to play it?"

"Yeah."

"Cool. Then we'll play that." Gunn began to deal out the cards.

A small smile appeared on D.J.'s face. Everyone went back to what they were doing. When Gunn finished dealing, he got ready to play, placing a hand on one of the two middle cards.

"Ready?"

Before D.J. cold reply, the hotel doors opened and closed rather loudly. Everyone looked to the entrance and saw Connor and Dawn. Connor was banged up; a large gash marked his forehead and small cuts adorned his arms. D.J. stood up.

"Connor? Dawn? What the hell?" Angel asked.

But Connor ignored his father. His gaze was focused on D.J. He began walking towards her. The look in his eyes told her everything. Connor stopped in his tracks when she spoke.

"You went to her. You went to her and she told you." Tears began to form in her eyes as she stared at Connor.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Connor asked earnestly. D.J. looked away. She covered her ears and shut her eyes. Connor continued. "Why did you keep it a secret from me?"

D.J. shook her head. "No." She moved her hands and opened her eyes. She cried out. "I can't deal with this right now!" She turned and ran up the stairs. Connor tried to follow her, but Angel grabbed a hold of his arm.

"Connor, wait!"

Connor tried wrenching his arm away from him. "Let go of me!"

"Would you just wait?"

Connor was still trying to pull his arm free from his father's grasp, but then he stopped struggling and stared at his father hard. He then realized something.

__

- "Some things have happened to change my mind." -

Angel let go of him. Connor took two steps back and glared at him.

"You knew, didn't you? You knew that she was my daughter and you didn't tell me!" He screamed into his father's face.

A brief silence filled the room, but it was interrupted by the sound of shattering glass. Spike had dropped his beer bottle. The cards in Gunn's hands fell to the table. Illyria and Dawn just stood and watched the scene before them.

"Connor, if you would just let me explain-"

Connor interrupted his father. "No." He shook his head and ran up the stairs. Dawn followed him.

Gunn and Spike came up behind Angel.

"Dude, care to explain?"

Angel looked at Illyria. She only looked back at him. Angel let out a long sigh and turned to Gunn and Spike. He proceeded to tell them everything he knew.

* * *

"D.J.! Open this god damn door now!" Connor pounded on the door. He was ready to break it down. Connor was pissed. He felt like he had been betrayed and lied to. He felt like he had been played and he hated feeling that way. He continued to pound on the door. "I'll break it down if you don't open it!"

"Connor! Stop!" Dawn grabbed a hold of his arm and pulled it back. "Just stop! You're not helping!"

Connor pulled away from her and went back to the door. This pissed off Dawn very much. Using magic, she pinned Conner to the wall, away from the door. He struggled to break free from her spell.

"Damn it Dawn!" He yelled at her.

"Damn it Connor!" She yelled back. "You need to calm down!"

"She's my daughter!"

"She's my daughter too, damn it!" Dawn was getting red-faced mad. "And I'm not going to let you get all in her face like this!"

Connor glared at her. "She lied to me."

"Maybe she did, but she's stuck in the past. Her sister almost killed her today. The last thing she needs right now is for her parents to come barging in on her and yelling in her face like this." Dawn paused and her features softened a little bit. "What she needs right now is some time and space and you need to calm down."

Connor's face softened as well and he looked down. "She's my daughter…" He said softly.

"I know how you feel. I have so many questions, but now is not the time." She released the spell.

Connor was still looking down. "When will be the time?"

"When she's ready."

On the other side of the door, D.J. sat leaned up against it. She heard everything that went on the other side. Her face was wet from crying. How had everything fallen so much apart?

TBC…

* * *

A/N: Review please!

Preview for the next chapter:

With her secret out, D.J. locks herself in her room. However, she can't avoid everyone forever. She'll have to face her father eventually.


	6. Falling Into Darkness

****

Title: Daughters of the Unnatural  
**Part**: 6: Falling into Darkness  
**Author**: Liayso  
**Email**: **Disclaimer**: The characters of the Angel and Buffy world are not mine. I'm just borrowing them for this story. I do own the characters D.J. and Abby.  
**Summary**: The daughter of The Key and The Destroyer sure has her hands full. Her twin sister wants to kill her and now she's stuck in the past. Can she possibly calm her raging sister down and get back to her own time? Lame summary, I know.  
**Rating**: PG-13 for swearing and violence  
**Spoilers**: Everything I guess. This story is set a couple of months after Angel's series finale.  
**A/N:** Sorry for the cliffhanger last chapter. You're really going to hate me at the end of this chapter, nice big cliffhanger. Heheh… Anyway, again, thank you for the reviews. They're always welcomed. I'm afraid Abby won't be interacting with anyone other than her sister anytime soon, but I'll try to throw some Abby/Spike interaction somewhere in the future for you, Celestia Nailo. I mean, she does seem to have gotten her colorful vocabulary from him. Onto the chapter! Remember, italicized words in between the dashes are flashbacks.

* * *

"Hey D.J."

Gunn knocked softly on D.J.'s bedroom door. The night when everyone had found out her secret, D.J. had locked herself in her room. She had spent a night and a day locked within her room, and now she was entering another day of isolation. Gunn was once again trying to get her come out, but especially after the fiasco that night, it looked like she wouldn't be coming out anytime soon.

__

"They're Dawn's what!" Spike shrieked.

Angel closed his eyes and repeated himself. "D.J. and Abby are Connor and Dawn's daughters in the future."

Gunn was in disbelief. "Wait, so you're telling me that D.J. and Teen Mean are your grandkids?" Angel nodded. "Man, your family's even more messed up than I thought."

Angel frowned at him.

"Your son and my Nibblet!" Spike once again shrieked in Angel's face. The idea of Dawn, who he thought of as his own daughter, with Angel's son just appalled him.

"Yes. Connor and Dawn get married and have kids. Get over it, Spike." Angel was getting annoyed.

"Oh I'll get over it. Right after I rip the boy's bloody head off." Spike began stalking upstairs.

"Oh no you don't!" Angel went after him. Gunn and Illyria followed.

Spike found Dawn and Connor in the hall and immediately went for the boy's throat.

"You hurt her and I swear to God that I'll bloody kill you!" He slammed Connor to the wall.

Dawn tried to pull him away from her future husband. "Spike! What do you think you're doing?"

Angel punched Spike away from his son. "Don't lay a finger on him!"

Soon Angel and Spike were going at it, punching and kicking each other. Everyone was trying to break them apart. D.J. peeked her head out of her room to see what was going on. She was surprised to see her grandfather and Spike having a slugfest. Connor saw her and immediately headed towards her. D.J. saw him coming, so she quickly shut and locked her door once again. Connor began pounding on her door.

"D.J.! Open up right now!"

Things were just getting out of hand. Dawn was getting frustrated. She screamed at the top of her lungs. "EVERYONE JUST STOP RIGHT NOW!" With a big flash of magic, she separated Spike and Angel, and removed Connor from the door once again. She let out a heavy breath and soon became very dizzy from using so much magic. She stumbled forward and was about to fall.

"Dawn!" Connor cried out.

"Nibblet!" Spike cried out as well.

The both of them went forward to catch her, but Gunn got there quicker.

"All right! Enough! Everyone just calm down." Tensions were high in the hallway and Gunn did his best to cut it down to size. "Spike, if Connor and Dawn do hook up, then it's none of your god damn business." He turned to Connor. "Connor, it's obvious that D.J. does not want to talk to you right now, so just back off and leave her alone." He turned to Angel. "Angel, you should have told us about this whole thing sooner and maybe we could have avoided this whole fiasco." The three men looked down, ashamed of themselves. "Now, I'm going to put Dawn to bed. I want all of you to go to your respective rooms and cool down and I had better not find you guys fighting again or else I'm breaking out the stakes. Got it?"

Their silence meant that they got it.

"Good." Gunn headed to Dawn's room with her in his arms. Everyone else left the hallway to go to his or her own rooms. Illyria remained in the hallway. She had been silent throughout the whole thing.

"Things were so much simpler back in my time." She shook her head and headed to her quarters.-

Gunn shook his head at the memory. He knocked again. "Come on D.J. You've been in there for the past day and night."

"The bird still hasn't come out yet?" Spike walked up to Gunn.

He shook his head. "No. I'm starting to wonder if she's even still in there."

"Oh she's still there. I can hear her breathing." Spike stared at the door. "I still can't believe that Nibblet has kids. With Angel Jr. no less."

"Yeah, I still can't quite believe it either."

"I mean, Dawn can do so much better."

"You aren't going to try and kill Connor again, are you?"

"No, but I am going to keep an eye on the little bugger."

Gunn rolled his eyes and knocked on the door again. "Come on D.J. You have to come out sometime. Aren't you even hungry?"

Silence.

"I guess I could slip you some pizza under the door if you're not opening up."

"No."

Gunn and Spike turned to see Connor walking down the hall towards them. Angel was behind him.

"If she wants to eat then she should leave her room and get the food herself." Connor's voice was harsh and he kept walking, not even casting a sideways glance towards D.J.'s door. Spike frowned at his walking form.

"Well aren't you Dad-of-the-Year material, letting your poor daughter starve to death."

"Do as he says, Spike. You too, Gunn." Angel said.

"But Angel-" Gunn started.

"Just do it." Angel looked at the door. "Giving her time and space isn't making her come out. So we'll have to draw her out with the lack of food." Angel shook his head. "I don't like it either, but she's just as stubborn as her father. Come on." Angel pushed everyone away from the door and the three of them left the hallway.

On the other side of the door, D.J. sat at the edge of her bed. She listened to the footsteps of them walking away until she could hear them no more. She heard everything, their conversations, the constant knocking, and the footsteps. She even heard their sighs and the shakes of their heads in pity. D.J. let out a sigh. Everything had broken down and fallen apart. She had hoped that she would have been able to calm Abby down and return to the future without having her parents find out about them, but that wasn't going to happen now. D.J. gripped the edge of her bed and shut her eyes. The future was ruined because of her, at least if felt that way to D.J.

D.J. looked to her dresser. The items and the book she had gathered up the other day were inside it. Those things were her last hope in stopping Abby. She didn't want to use them, but Abby left her no choice. Abby wouldn't let her speak; she wouldn't let anyone speak to her. D.J. had to do it before anyone else got hurt, but could she go through with it knowing that her father was still mad at her?

Her father.

Connor had sounded so angry. D.J. wasn't used to him being angry with her. Then again, he was always too busy to be angry with her. Connor was always with Abby: training her and taking her on cases and patrols. The only real times D.J. had gotten to spend with her father were the times in the basement and the many times when he rescued her. Even then, he was either broody or overprotective.

D.J. guessed that one of the reasons why she didn't tell them that she was their daughter was because she really was enjoying the growing friendship she had with her parents. They didn't treat her like a little kid, nor were they being overprotective. If they had known, they would have done just that. That wasn't the case though. Now that they know, they weren't overprotective; they were angry. Well, Connor was angry. D.J. wasn't sure about her mother.

Her mother.

Dawn had not once passed by or knocked on D.J.'s door. D.J. figured that Dawn was freaking out about the whole thing, even if she had kept a level head when Connor was trying to break down her door. D.J. was grateful that her mother and Gunn had managed to calm everyone down a bit that night. She would have broken down some more if Connor had gotten into her room. D.J. just wished that Dawn would at least come and try to talk to her. If D.J. were to let anyone in, it would be her mother. While Connor trained Abby in fighting, Dawn was training D.J. in the ways of magic and translating ancient text. The two of them were really close. The fact that Dawn didn't stop by and check on her only made D.J. feel more awful. D.J. fell back onto her bed and sighed.

Her life was too complicated.

* * *

"I sensed a great sadness emanate from the girl's room. You are her life giver. You should go speak with her." Lace within Illyria's words was a tiny hinge of concern.

Dawn remained silent and didn't look into Illyria's eyes. The two of them had bumped into each other in the hallways of the hotel.

"You must speak to her, as well as her father."

Dawn looked up. "Connor…"

She heard footsteps behind her and turned her head to see Connor down the hall. Connor stopped in his tracks when their eyes met. For a brief minute, the two of them starred at each other. Dawn began to breathe heavily. She broke the gaze and brushed pass Illyria, buttering a quick "Excuse me" as she hurried into the library. Illyria watched her retreating form and felt Connor pass her as well, after Dawn.

When Connor entered the library, he found Dawn facing a bookshelf. Her face was buried into a book. She looked to be reading it, but Connor knew better.

"You're avoiding me," He said.

Dawn quickly glanced at him but then turned back to the book in her hands.

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are."

Dawn faced him. "What makes you say that?"

"Every time I enter the same room as you, you find some excuse to leave." Connor crossed his arms. He stood in the doorway. She couldn't leave now. Dawn turned back to the bookshelf and placed the book back in its place. She remained quiet.

"Why?" Connor asked.

"I just needed some space." Dawn didn't turn back to him.

"You don't want to be with me." Connor stated.

Dawn spun around. "It's not that! It's just…."

"It's just that you don't like me."

"No, I mean yes, I mean…. I do like you, Connor. I like you a whole lot."

"Then why are you avoiding me like the plague?"

"We just met, Connor. To know that we get married and have kids, it just scares me."

"Why?"

"I grew among people whose relationships never lasted." Dawn began rambling. "I mean, my parents got divorced. Buffy's had more boyfriends than I can count. Xander left Anya at the altar. Oz left Willow and then she lost Tara. Not to mention the whole jacket love spell thing. Oh and my first kiss was with a vampire who then tried to sire me."

Connor stepped towards her and grabbed her gently by the shoulders. Dawn calmed down a little.

"You and me… It's just too good to be true."

"But it is true, Dawn." Connor lifted her face so that he could stare into her blue eyes. "Even before all this stuff happened, I had liked you and I wanted to be with you. And now that I know that I do end up with you, well, that makes me happy."

Dawn looked up at him teary-eyed. "Connor…" She leaned into Connor's chest and he wrapped his arms around her.

"It makes me happy too, but I'm scared." Her voice was muffled against his chest, but Connor heard her loud and clear.

"Don't be." He gently pulled her away from his chest so that he could gaze into her face. "You and me, we work."

Dawn smiled at him. A tear began to fall down her cheek. Connor wiped it away. He then cupped her chin with his hand. He slowly leaned down and pressed his lips to her lips. Dawn wrapped her arms around his neck, further deepening their kiss. For the longest time, they stood together, kissing. They finally had to break their kiss for some air; they were human. Well, mostly human anyway. Both of them were breathless when they pulled apart.

"Wow…" Dawn said, as she got lost in Connor's eyes once again. Her heart was beating very quickly.

Connor smiled at her. "Do I kiss better than a vampire?"

Dawn smirked. "Way better." Once again, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into another kiss.

* * *

"Come on, Bit." You have to come out someday." Spike was once again at D.J.'s door, trying to coax her to come out. Illyria was with him.

"You will starve if you remain in your quarters." Illyria tried to make her come out as well.

On the other side of the door, D.J. stood, hungry. Her stomach growled. She couldn't hold out any longer; she had to get some food in her, but she couldn't go out. D.J. wasn't ready to face her father yet.

"She still won't come out?"

Both Illyria and Spike turned to see Dawn walking up to them. Spike shook his head.

"The bird's as stubborn as you and your sister. Maybe you can get her to come out, she's your daughter."

Dawn shook her head. "We can't force her if she doesn't want to. Besides, we have a case right now and Angel wants all of us on it."

"But what about D.J.?" Spike motioned to the door.

Dawn stepped up to the door. "D.J., it's me, Da- your mother. Look, we're going on a case right now. If you want to help out, we'll be at the old loading docks." Dawn paused. "I'm sorry I haven't tried talking to you sooner. I guess I just have been trying to sort everything out. Listen, I know you must be really conflicted right now and I want you to know that I'm right here for you." Only silence came from the other room. Dawn continued. "Maybe after I come back from the case we can talk."

Dawn gave the door a pleading look and then she began to walk away. Spike and Illyria followed. D.J. smiled. That one sentence made her feel a little bit better. She fought the urge to run out of her room and into the arms of her mother. She won that battle and remained in her room.

For about an hour, D.J. remained in her room. She wanted to be sure that they actually did leave. D.J. peeked her head out of her room. The hotel was eerily quiet. The only noise was her growling stomach. She listened for voices downstairs, but heard none.

"They really are gone."

D.J. left her room and made her way downstairs. Her stomach was growling the whole way. She was starving! D.J. made her way into the kitchen. There was a box of pizza on the table. D.J. rushed to it and flipped it open. There were a couple of slices left. D.J. lifted a slice to her mouth.

"I figured you would come out now."

D.J. froze just as she was going to take a bite. She placed the slice of pizza down and turned around to face her father. Connor had his arms crossed. There was no running away for D.J. She avoided his gaze and looked to the ground.

"You know, I was waiting for you in the basement." D.J. didn't look up at him. Connor continued. "I had all this stuff I wanted to say to you, but now that I'm actually talking to you, I can't exactly remember what I wanted to say."

D.J. remained silent. She was at a loss for words as well. She glanced at her father, but then looked away. The two for them stood in uncomfortable silence for a few minutes. Then Connor spoke up.

"Why did you lie to me?"

D.J.'s head shot up and faced him.

"I didn't lie!" She looked away and spoke more quietly. "I just twisted my words into the truth and didn't tell you some things."

"That's just as bad as lying."

"I know. I'm sorry."

D.J. still didn't look into his face. She was afraid of what it might show: anger, disappointment, sadness. She didn't want to see any of that and if she looked up, she would see one or a mixture of the three. D.J. felt Connor stare holes into her with his eyes. She felt the intensity of his stare. She feared that stare.

"D.J., please look at me." Connor pleaded.

Slowly, D.J. lifted her head to look at him. She was right. There was a mixture of saddness, disappointment, and anger. It was mostly sadness though. D.J. shifted uncomfortably under his gaze

"Okay, so technically, you didn't lie, but why did you keep it a secret? Why didn't you just tell us? Tell me?"

"I'm sorry. I just didn't want it to be weird for you 'cuz you and mom just met and…"

"And you didn't want me to know that I failed as a father. Again." Connor turned away from her then let out a small laugh. "You lied about me being a good father."

"No I didn't! You are a good father!"

Connor turned back to D.J. "Then why is Abby-"

"It's more of a sibling thing than a parent thing." D.J. looked away.

"But still, there must have been something I did or didn't do to cause her to be like this."

D.J. looked back at her father. His shoulders were slumped. Tears began to form in her eyes.

"You're blaming yourself for something that hasn't happened yet."

"But it happened for you."

"Yes, it did, but I don't blame you for it. You shouldn't either."

"How can I not? You're my daughter and I've screwed up your life."

"You haven't done anything!" The tears were falling down now.

"But I will, in the future!" He began to cry too.

"Don't Dad." D.J. shook her head. "Please don't do this. If anything, this is all my fault. God! If only I had just trained with you from day one, then Abby would have been used to me being strong and she wouldn't have freaked out when I killed her demon."

The tears were tumbling down in waterfalls as D.J. began to shake. Connor pulled her sob-racked body to his and hugged her.

"You couldn't have known that this would happen." Connor began stroking her hair. "I guess neither of us is at fault." He felt his shirt become wet with his daughter's tears.

"I'm still sorry, Dad."

"I'm sorry too, D.J."

His tears fell upon her head. For a brief moment, father and daughter held each other, both crying. D.J. slowly pulled herself away from Connor's chest. She looked up into her father's teary eyes.

"I wasn't lying when I said I love you. I would never lie to you, remember that."

Connor smiled softly at his daughter. D.J. continued.

"Abby loves you too, I know she does. No matter what she says, she loves you."

Connor didn't say anything in reply. He just hugged his daughter once again. The precious moment was interrupted by D.J.'s growling stomach. D.J. stepped back and placed a hand on her belly. She still hadn't eaten anything.

"Can I eat now?" She pleaded.

Connor gave out a small laugh. "Yeah."

D.J. smiled and picked up the pizza slice she had put down earlier.

* * *

Angel and the others stumbled back into the hotel to find Connor sitting on the lobby couch, reading a book. D.J. was nowhere to be seen. Angel stared at his son incredulously as he stood to greet them.

"She still hasn't come out?"

"She came out. We talked."

"And?" Dawn stepped towards him.

"And nothing. We just talked." Connor stuck his hands in his pockets.

"Where is she then?" Angel asked.

"She's in her room." Everyone stared wide-eyed at Connor. "Oh, but she hasn't locked herself in there again. She just wanted to rest after practically devouring the whole kitchen." Everyone sighed in relief.

"So everything's cool between you two?" Gunn asked.

"Yeah." Connor said with a smile and a nod.

"That's good." Angel paused. "Things got worked out between you two really fast. I guess girls are easier to raise."

Spike made a "Pfftt" sound. Dawn punched him in the arm and said "Hey!" He just chuckled.

Dawn turned back to Connor. "Can I see her?" Connor nodded and she ran upstairs. Dawn stopped before D.J.'s door and knocked. This time, she answered.

"Come in."

D.J. shut the book she was reading as Dawn came in.

"So that's where that book was. I've been looking everywhere for it." Dawn sat on the side of D.J.'s bed.

"Sorry." D.J. smiled. "You should get use to me taking books from the library. I do that a lot in the future."

"I'll make note of that." Dawn paused. "So, everything is okay between you and Connor?"

D.J. nodded. "What about you?"

Dawn blushed. "Um, yeah."

D.J. smiled at her. She then looked down at her fingers.

"I wish everything was okay between Abby and me."

Dawn reached over and brushed aside D.J.'s bangs from her eyes.

"I'm sure things will work out. We'll find a way to bring her around."

"D.J. looked up at her mother. "Thanks Mom. It's not weird for you when I call you 'Mom' is it?"

"No. It actually feels natural."

D.J. pulled her mother into a hug. "I want to rest now. It's getting late."

"Okay." Dawn got up. "Good night D.J. I'll see you in the morning." Dawn left her room.

D.J.'s face turned into one of sadness. She said softly, "No, you won't."

D.J. tossed her legs over the side of her bed and walked over to her dresser. She pulled open the top drawer and pulled out a small vial filled with a purple liquid. She had prepared this in the time she spent locked in her room using the instructions in the book and the herbs she had picked up. This was her last resort to stopping Abby. D.J. didn't want to use it, but she knew she had to.

* * *

Gunn strolled into the lobby, whistling quietly. In his hand was a plate and on that plate was a big sub sandwich. It was really late and everyone was asleep in his or her room, well, he thought everyone was asleep. He sat down on the couch and was about to take a bite out of his sandwich when he saw D.J. at the bottom of the steps.

"Gunn." D.J. said, surprised to see him up.

"D.J., what are you doing up?"

"I couldn't sleep. You?"

Gunn held up his sandwich. "Just getting a midnight snack. Want some?"

"Sure." D.J. waked over to him. She set her book onto the table and sat next to him on the couch. Gunn handed her a piece of his sandwich and eyed the book she had placed down on the table. A slip of paper was tucked in between the pages.

"Whatcha reading?" He asked as he motioned to the book.

"Oh, it's a book about ancient poisons and potions and other stuff."

Gunn struggled to read the foreign title.

"It's in Ancient Sumerian." She replied.

"Wow, and you understand that stuff?" D.J. nodded. "Damn, you're like a mini-Wesley. Now me, all that ancient mumbo jumbo stuff is enough to make my head spin. Give me a sword over the codex thingie any day."

D.J. gave him a small smile and said sadly, "I prefer the book over the sword." She took a bite out of her sandwich.

Gunn stared at her for a moment. "You don't like fighting do you?"

D.J. shook her head. "I thought I would, once I started my training, but I don't. I mean, it's nice being strong and able to protect myself, but the fighting it just gets to me. I guess I'm just not cut out for it." She paused. "But I kind of have to fight. I have the strength to do so and there are people that need my help."

"You remind me of my sister."

"Alonna?" D.J. remembered a couple of stories about her.

"Yeah. She fought demons too, but she never liked it. She wasn't really much of a fighter. That's why I tried so hard to protect her." Gunn stared into the distance remembering the awful memories. He then turned back to D.J. "Your sister Abby has some major jealousy issues. I mean, you kill one little demon and she goes all postal on you."

D.J. looked down at her feet. "It wasn't just one little demon. He was kind of like the Beast you guys faced, only a thousand times worse."

Gunn whistled. "And you killed that thing?"

"I caught him off guard. I was lucky."

"You were prophesized."

"That too."

"But still, Abby shouldn't have reacted the way she did. You're supposed to protect your little sister, not try to kill her."

D.J. stared at Gunn. He looked a little sad. "I'm sorry. I'm probably reminding you of some bad memories."

"It's okay. It's nice to remember my sister once in awhile. I don't ever want to forget her."

The two of them sat in silence and finished their snacks. D.J. finally spoke up.

"Thank you, for breaking up that fight the other night."

Gunn smiled at her. "It was nothing. Besides, your mom was the one that really stopped it. Although it was cool bossing around the big three for a change."

D.J. let out a small laugh. Then she became a little solemn. "Gunn, can I call you Uncle Gunn?"

Gunn smiled at her. "Go right ahead."

D.J. gave him a small sad smile. "I'm sorry Uncle Gunn."

"For what?" Gunn was confused.

D.J. suddenly struck him on his head, knocking him out cold.

"For that."

D.J. laid Gunn on the couch. She walked over to the weapons cabinet. She pulled out one of the swords and twirled it in her hands. Deciding that it would do, D.J. set the sword against the wall. She then opened the weapons chest and rummaged through the things inside. She pulled out a small dart with a long needle. She took out the vial, opened it and stuck the dart into it. The dart closed up the vial with the needle inside the liquid. D.J. tucked it into her sweater pocket and picked up her sword. She turned to leave. As she placed her hand on the doorknob, she turned to give the hotel one last look, and then left.

* * *

Connor placed a hand on D.J.'s doorknob.

"Connor?"

He looked to the side and saw Dawn step towards him.

"Dawn, what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question."

"I just wanted to check on D.J. You?

"The same."

The two of them smiled at each other. Connor opened the door. However, they didn't find D.J. She was nowhere to be found. The two of them did the first thing that came to mind. They panicked.

* * *

D.J. wandered the streets, trying to get a hold of Abby's scent. Her wandering brought her to an alley. D.J. got a strange vibe. She looked around and saw a broken light sign that said 'Caritas' on it.

"Caritas…" D.J. looked around. "This is the place where Dad was born."

"Really? Who would have thought?"

D.J. immediately turned around, sword in hand. She saw Abby sitting on top of a closed dumpster with her legs crossed. Abby smirked at her sister.

"Hi there little sis." She waved, tauntingly.

"Abby…" D.J. gripped her sword tightly.

Abby motioned to the sword with her head. "What do you plan on doing with that?" She jumped off the dumpster, her own sword in her hands.

D.J. brought up her sword. "What I have to do."

She then charged her sister.

* * *

"Angel!"

"Dad!"

Connor and Dawn pounded on his bedroom door. A grumpy looking Angel appeared on the other side and he glared at them, but then softened when he saw their panicked faces.

"What's wrong?"

"D.J.'s gone. She's not in her room." Connor said frantically.

"I think she went after Abby." Dawn said.

"Nonsense. D.J.'s not stupid. She wouldn't do that. She probably went downstairs for a snack."

The three of them headed down the stairs. As they descended, they heard a groan coming from the lobby. They saw Gunn sprawled on the couch, ripping his head.

"Gunn!" Angel rushed over to him. "What happened?"

"It was D.J. She was here and we were talking. Then she knocked me out."

"Do you know where she went?" Angel asked earnestly.

"I was kind of busy with the being knocked out thing."

"Dad." Angel looked over to Connor. He was sanding in front of the opened weapons cabinet. "One of the swords is missing."

"What?" Angel's eyes widened.

"Guys." They all looked to Dawn. She had picked up the book that D.J. had set down on the table. She opened it to where it was marked with slip of paper. Dawn unfolded the paper. "It's a note."

They all gathered around her as she began to read D.J.'s letter aloud.

* * *

"Gah!"

D.J. stepped backwards. She looked at her arm. Abby had cut it slightly. D.J. looked back at her sister who only smirked evilly back at her. Abby then swung her sword at her again. D.J. quickly blocked it with her own sword. At the same time, Dawn was reading D.J.'s letter to everyone. The words floated in the background of the sisters' fight.

__

My dearest family,

Please forgive me. I'm about to do something really foolish.

Abby kicked D.J. in her chest. D.J. stumbled back. She used her momentum to kick her sister in the chin as she flipped backwards.

__

The page that I have marked in the book, it contains steps to make a certain poison.

Abby regained her composure and tried to stab her sister. D.J. dodged it and swung her sword. The blade cut into Abby's arm. The wound mirrored the D.J. had. Abby looked at the cut and then back at her sister. She then lunged for her.

__

The poison is ancient. It was used on the old and sickly about to die.

D.J. and Abby exchanged more blows. Their swords clanged against each other each time they struck.

__

It puts people into a dream world, where they can review the past memories of their lives to see why things happened the way that they did. I figured that I could use it on Abby, to make her see that I had no ill intentions towards her.

D.J. and Abby kept fighting. Abby punched her sister in the face and she fell to the ground. Abby raised her sword and brought it down. D.J. quickly rolled out of the way.

__

The thing is, after the person finds out why the things happened the way that they did, then that person dies. That is why it was used on those that were about to die, to give the people's souls a chance to sort out their problems before they moved on.

On the ground, D.J. swung her sword at her sister's legs. Abby jumped up and then kicked D.J. in the face.

__

I'm going to use this poison on Abby and me, so we can go through the dream walk together. We aren't even supposed to exist yet in this time, so it's probably for the best that we die shortly after.

D.J. lost her grip on her sword as she fell back to the pavement. Abby kicked her sword away and stepped towards D.J.

__

Please understand that I had no choice but to do this. Abby won't listen to me. She won't listen to anyone.

D.J. flipped herself up and Abby made a motion to stab her. D.J. moved to the side and kicked up her leg, knocking the sword out of Abby's hand. It flew across the alley.

__

I love all of you remember that. I'm sorry I have to leave you like this. I will see you in five years.

Dawn read the last of the letter.

"Love,

Darla-Joyce.

D.J."

Dawn looked up at everyone. She had a worried look on her face.

"We have to stop her!" Connor cried out.

"Dawn, stay here and read up more about this poison. Connor, let's go."

Angel and Connor ran out of the hotel.

* * *

Abby punched her sister down and she fell to the floor. The two of them were now unarmed and they resorted to their fists and feet. D.J.'s nose was bleeding and a large gash was on her forehead. Abby had a small cut right above her left eye. D.J. coughed in pain. She was obviously losing.

"You'll never be able to bring me to my knees like I have done to you. What made you think that you could beat me?" Abby holstered her sister up and slammed her against the brick wall.

"I guess I wasn't thinking." D.J. choked out.

"I bet you think mom and dad will come just in time to save you." She smirked. "But they won't. It's hopeless for you."

"You're right. They won't get here in time." D.J. reached into her pocket. "But I do have one last hope."

She pulled out her poison covered dart and stuck it into Abby's neck. Abby quickly let go of D.J. and stepped back. D.J. pulled the dart out of her. Abby stumbled backward. The poison was quickly taking affect.

"What the hell did you just do to me?" She shook here head. Her vision was becoming blurry.

D.J. stuck the dart needle back into the vial to coat it once again.

"I'm sorry Abby, but you left me no choice."

"Bitch."

Abby fell down, unconscious. D.J. looked down at her. "Don't worry. I'll follow you big sis."

She brought the dart up to her own neck. She saw her father and her grandfather running up the alley towards her. D.J. looked at them with sad eyes.

"D.J.! NO!" Connor shouted at her.

"I'm sorry." She whispered softly.

"NO!"

D.J. pushed the dart into her neck. She pulled it out and it fell to the floor. The running form of her father split into two and then went back to one. D.J. blinked and shook her head. She was becoming very dizzy. The world was spinning and she began to fall. As she fell, the last thing she saw was the darkness.

TBC…

* * *

A/N: See! I told you would hate me for this cliffhanger. Anyway, leave a review!

Preview for the next chapter:

D.J. and Abby lie dying in a poisoned dream. As they take a walk through their past, the others try to find an antidote, but the antidote might lie in hell.


End file.
